From Amazon: It’s the dawn of the Golden Age of Aviation on planet Prester, and retro-futuristic sky vehicles known as vanships dominate the horizon. Claus Valca – a flyboy born with the right stuff – and his fiery navigator Lavie are fearless racers obsessed with becoming the first sky couriers to cross the Grand Stream in a vanship. But when the high-flying duo encounters a mysterious girl named Alvis, they are thrust into the middle of an endless battle between Anatoray and Disith – two countries systematically destroying each other according to the code of chivalric warfare. Lives will be lost and legacies determined as Claus and Lavie attempt to bring peace to their world by solving the riddle of its chaotic core.
Last Exile holds a special place in my heart because it was the first anime I bought in full, special edition art box and all, as a budding otaku. This was back in the days when you had to pay $30 for a measly three-to-four episodes, so that was easily $200+ of my hard-earned teenage money.
But now it’s time for The Culling. A house only has so much shelf space, so Jacob and I occasionally go through our anime collection to see A) which old multi-volume favorites have been replaced with slimmer single-volume complete collections, or B) which ones simply aren’t earning their shelf space.
All of which was why I was both excited and nervous to watch Last Exile again for the first time since high school. Would it hold up to the nostalgic glow that I’d so lovingly pictured around it?
Now that we’ve finished it again, the answer is a resounding “UGHHHHH NOOOOO. ;_;”
Not even that classy opening could save it.
Don’t get me wrong. Last Exile is a gem for a certain audience, but unfortunately that is the narrow audience of “steampunk anime fans who are willing to sit through inadvertently inconsistent and stupid characters, lazy plotting, and a let-down of a big reveal all because, on its surface, the series looks darn cool.” And aesthetically, it does.
Last Exile’s neat combination of steampunk/dieselpunk (for the warring nations of Anatoray and Disith) and futuristic design (for The Guild) is what drew me to the series in the first place, and for me, that production design was enough to carry me though the entire series, watching both as a teen and as an adult. Range Murata, who to this day is one of my favorite designers, did fantastic work bringing the world of Last Exile to life, from the unique (if wildly impractical) vanship designs to the clean, geometric aesthetic of The Guild to the simple appeal of the characters’ facial designs. It’s also rare to see art that can do so much with greys, browns, and muted colors and still make for an ultimately optimistic-feeling show, but Last Exile’s design pulls that off with panache.
Which makes it all the more unfortunate that the rest of the show doesn’t live up to that. Though the design of the show is good, the actual animation that goes into it is inconsistent. Most of the time, it’s good enough, but the moments when it falters, it does so in a big way, like one shot in which a crying, sniffling character’s face seems to implode on itself with each sniffle (pretty sure noses don’t move that way, even for the most intense cries). There are also moments where the CG flickers, which is distracting.
Worse than that, though, are the characters and handling of the plot. Again, don’t get me wrong – the characters are basically likable and interesting (except for Alex Row, who comes across as Diet Zero-Calorie Captain Herlock), but there are many obvious points where the writers inserted dialogue or conflict solely for the purpose of tension – for example, early on, where the main characters stress about having to fly into a war zone even though moments earlier, they’d literally chosen to fly into the exact same war zone to deliver a message that isn’t even related to the battle. There are also moments where the characters fail to make obvious observations – when it takes Klaus several minutes to realize that Dio is from The Guild, despite The Guild’s very obvious eccentricity and appearance, or, worst of all, when Alvis suddenly starts FREAKING GLOWING AND MESSING UP SHIP INSTRUMENTATION AND NO ONE STOPS TO SAY, “HEY THAT WAS WEIRD. WHY WAS SHE GLOWING?” Even though two main characters were in the room to see it happen. 😐 Not to mention that, despite being Guild members (if runaways), and thus members of an enemy faction, Dio and his companion are given complete freedom to roam the famed Silvana. 😐 Like, how does this ship even manage to stay in the air, much less become one of the most feared ships in this show? 😐 😐 😐
Anyway, all of this is done in service to the plot, which aims to keep secrets from the viewer in attempt to prepare for a big payoff at the end – the viewer learns little meaningful information about why Alvis is so important to Exile, what Exile even is, why Anatoray and Disith are fighting in the first place, etc. until the last several episodes of the series. By then, the viewer’s patience is spent, and the reveals aren’t even that good. SPOILERS: Anatoray and Disith are fighting because Disith’s land is becoming uninhabitable and its people need a new home. Exile is a device meant to carry people off the planet to a more habitable world (or perhaps regenerate the present dying world. The series wasn’t incredibly clear on that). Alvis is a key to activating Exile.
As reveals go, these are all pretty basic, and I would have much preferred to watch a series where these points were revealed early on, and time was spent answering questions about the world around them.
Like, if they have big ol’ warships with ranged guns, why do they bring the ships close to each other to fight with musketeers?
If Anatoray and Disith are able to come to a truce so easily, why’d they even war to begin with?
How did The Guild even come to be? Why’s The Guild so weird? What’s up with that wack coming of age ceremony? Like Guild why even?
What exactly is Claudia fluid and what does it even do? Okay, to be fair, it’s the magic BS that allows these impossible aerial designs to fly, but even then, where’s it come from? How’s it work? If it’s apparently easier to come by than water (you never see Klaus and Lavie worrying about the quality or amount of their Claudia fluid, after all), why’s the variety of flying vehicles so limited? For that matter, if Claudia fluid allows The Guild to maintain its posh floating fortress, why shouldn’t Disith use it to power alternative housing? Man, you could almost write a Dune-scale series about the economics and politics of Claudia fluid. (*Quietly goes to plot the intricacies of clarien fluid…*)
Finally, if Exile was built to get people off-slash-save a planet, why make it so crazy hard to find and activate? And why use something as specific as a magic little girl and some words that are only passed along orally? What if the words get changed or forgotten over the ages? Also why wrap the thing in killer spaghetti robots? That’s like giving a person all the M&Ms in the universe but coating all of them in a poison shell – except these M&Ms can save a whole population, which makes it worse.
The first third of the series is fun, but Episodes 13-16 provide the clearest proof of how the series fails. These episodes reveal information and twists that, by all means, should have been earth-shaking for the series, but since it’s so badly set up, the viewer has no emotional connection to anything that’s going on. You know you’re supposed to be surprised and intrigued by what’s happening, but it’s just not there, and that same feeling of lost potential continues through the end of the series, where I literally did not care about anything that happened in the last six episodes.
Ultimately, Last Exile tries to be a character-driven political sci-fi war drama, but since it never focuses on any one of those things, it fails at all of them. Dedicated steampunk and dieselpunk fans will enjoy it for the aesthetic, but even for those fans, only the first 10 or so episodes will be worth it. The rest will just be a glaring example of a series with worlds of squandered potential.
It’s still staying on my shelf, though. The nostalgia factor is just too great. (And I really do like those first 10 episodes.)
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Note: Holo Writing is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program and, as such, may earn a small commission from any product purchased through an affiliate link on this blog.
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The Time Reavers Blog Tour Kicks Off!
Time Reavers is on its first audiobook blog tour, and thus far, the praise is flowing!
Dab of Darkness calls Time Reavers “a hell of a fun ride” with “great narration!” Meanwhile, The Literary Apothecary gives it 4.2 of 5 stars, and Macarons & Paperbacks is “impressed with [reader Tess Irondale]’s narrating skills.” (We agree. Her voices are magnificent!)
Links to all tour stops are posted below if you’d like to get in on the adventure – and even if you already know you love Time Reavers, there are plenty of reasons to follow. Many stops feature audio excerpts and interviews with Jacob, as well as a giveaway in which you could win a signed copy of the print edition, so go check them out!
Finally, a big thanks to Audiobookworm Promotions for arranging this tour. They’ve done a fantastic job putting everything together for us, and we couldn’t have asked for a better tour partner. 🙂
Read on for more reavery goodness!
Time Reavers Blog Tour Stops
September 20th
Dab of Darkness Audiobook Reviews (Review, Giveaway)
Lomeraniel (Review, Audio Excerpt, Giveaway)
The Literary Apothecary (Review)
September 21st
Jazzy Book Reviews (Audio Excerpt, Interview, Giveaway)
Macarons & Paperbacks (Review, Interview, Giveaway)
September 22nd
It’s Novel to Me (Review, Author Interview)
Notes From ‘Round the Bend (Audio Excerpt, Giveaway)
September 23rd
Lynn’s Romance Enthusiasm (Audio Excerpt, Interview)
Blogger Nicole Reviews (Audio Excerpt, Giveaway)
Twisted Book Junkie (Review, Giveaway)
September 24th
Adventures Thru Wonderland (Review, Giveaway)
September 25th
Buried Under Books (Review)*
September 26th
The Book Addict’s Reviews (Review, Audio Excerpt, Interview)*
Pregnant, Barefoot, in the Kitchen (Review)*
*Specific links will be updated as posted by the individual blogs. Links last updated on September 24th, 2017.
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Note: Holo Writing is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program and, as such, may earn a small commission from any product purchased through an affiliate link on this blog.
An Unproven Concept – Book Review
James Young is another of those authors whose books I bought at LibertyCon years ago and subsequently forgot to read because I tell myself that I’m not going to buy new books until I finish my current pile and, unfortunately, I am a terrible liar. Which results in old books getting hopelessly buried under new books.
An Unproven Concept suffers from an uninspiring title, which is another of the reasons why it sat on my to-read pile for so long. What it should really be titled is “MFing TITANIC IN SPACE!” or some equivalent, because truly, this is a book for people who watched Titanic and thought “You know what this movie needs? Starships and a higher body count.”
An Unproven Concept’s Titanic is a starliner that is the best of its type, but the iceberg on its horizon is the persistent advancement of ship technology, which threatens to obliterate the Titanic’s illustrious place in the echelon of starships. Company executives are breathing down the captain’s neck to keep his ship relevant and insist that a trip into uncharted – and illegal – space might just be the shot in the arm that Czarina Lines needs to stay at the top of the game.
Turns out that technological advancement isn’t the only iceberg in this Titanic’s way. When it makes first contact with not one, but two hostile alien species in this territory, it’ll need all the help it can get to save what remains of its passengers and crew.
Nearby are only two ships – the Constitution, a new, experimental ship that everyone expects to fail, and the Shigure, a dinosaur of a ship with a few surprises hidden up her sleeve (in both cases, the unproven concepts of the title). They’d better make it in time, because in this area of space, they’re the Titanic’s only hope.
An Unproven Concept is an entertaining piece of military sci-fi, especially for readers who are Titanic nerds and who like mounds of detail and numbers mixed in with their action. It isn’t so much a retelling of the Titanic disaster as a “What if the Titanic wrecked in space?” exploration, though it does keep some of the tropes that follow the Titanic story – namely, someone in power over the ship insisting that it go faster or, in this case, be more interesting. I initially found that one repetition frustrating; by this point in the far future, after inevitable centuries of Titanic retellings, the captain of a ship with the most unlucky name in transportation should know to answer any orders of that nature with “LOL u so silly. 😛 ” But on the flip side, it’s an obnoxious company exec doing the insisting, threatening livelihoods until he gets his way, etc., and when it comes down to it, a dumb, arrogant, disastrous exec is not that unbelievable. (Plus readers get to enjoy one of the most satisfying comeuppances in the history of executive idiocy when this character gets his due, so it’s worth it just for that.)
Despite its level of detail, too, it’s also fairly easy to read for even casual military sci-fi readers. Personally, when I encounter ship statistics in books, they sound like Charlie Brown’s teacher in my brain – I don’t read for the math. I read for the KABOOM. – but they’re so structured in this book that you can glance over them and still understand what’s going on around them.
Of course, no military sci-fi book – or disaster book, for that matter – is worth anything if you don’t care for the people fighting and dying, and An Unproven Concept’s characters are believable and sympathetic (except for that one exec, whom I’d call a dick if it wouldn’t be an insult to Richards and manly bits everywhere). Abraham Herrod, captain of the Titanic, is one of the easiest to relate to, as he’s just a guy trying to do a good job but being thwarted at every turn by the higher ups. Marcus Martin is one of the best and most badass; as chief security officer on the Titanic, he’s got an obvious bone to pick with everyone who allowed the ship to go into dangerous space, but until he can pick that bone (and maybe break a few) he’s determined to keep as many alive as he can – even if this sometimes involves letting others die.
See, this is a complex book where characters find themselves in situations where there are no good solutions, just some solutions that are slightly less bad than others. But if that’s what you’ve got to work with, you work with it. (It is a military novel, after all.) It also makes the losses even more catastrophic, for the characters who survive have to live not only with their personal losses, but the question of whether their actions were legitimately the right ones. The novel spends a significant amount of time after the conflict’s resolution wrapping up these emotional ends, which on one side, makes for a slow ending, but on the other, makes the end more relevant. It’s not a “Rah-rah! We beat the aliens!” win, because when it comes to any kind of military conflict, there’s rarely a “Rah-rah!”-style ending. There’s always tragedy among the victory, and An Unproven Concept captures that well. However, at its heart, it does allow itself to have some fun with its situations. I mean, characters don power armor and mech suits more than once, after all, and there’s plenty of tough soldier sass to go around.
My only real complaint about the book is that the aliens’ motives aren’t explored much at all; they’re present pretty much exclusively to wreak the havoc that causes the disaster. I would have liked to learn more about them, especially since two separate civilizations were involved, but then, that’s not the story this book wanted to tell. There are also enough typos to notice, but not enough to distract; the story was engaging enough that they didn’t matter as much to me as they would have in other books.
If you’re into military sci-fi, then, An Unproven Concept is well worth your time.
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Note: Holo Writing is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program and, as such, may earn a small commission from any product purchased through an affiliate link on this blog.
BattlePug, Volume 1 – Graphic Novel Review
Pssh, like I’m going to discover a book about a barbarian riding a giant pug and NOT read the heck out of it.
When table buddy Sanford Greene told me about BattlePug at The Tangled Web’s Free Comic Book Day event, I knew I’d found a new favorite before I even opened the cover. Volume 1 of Mike Norton’s webcomic-turned-graphic novel follows the nameless barbarian, The Last Kinmundian, as he seeks to avenge the destruction of his home by killing the monster that obliterated it. Standard barbarian stuff, except that the creature that destroyed Kinmundy? It’s an evil baby seal.
And lacking a village to toughen and angst up his barbarian self, he finds plenty of toughening and angst when he’s rescued and enslaved by the Northland Elves. Who are basically Santa’s elves. Led by a dude who is basically Santa.
Did I mention that he also rides a big ol’ pug?
If you don’t already know what you’re getting into with this comic, these two panels sum up its style perfectly:
And those two panels tell me all I need to know to love the snortin’ heck out of BattlePug.
That said, for people who do not have an irrational love of pugs or comics conceived during Drink and Draws (as this one was. Obviously), it leaves a little to be desired. As mentioned earlier, its story is pretty standard barbarian-seeking-revenge fare, with its comedic elements (and mainly the pug) being the sole feature that make it stand out. There’s nothing particularly original or engaging about the characters, and the comedic elements are not handled in a way that makes them inextricable from the world. Kinmundy could have just as easily been destroyed by a giant kitten, and regrettably even the titular BattlePug could be interchanged with another similarly silly looking creature and still maintain the sense of humor.
A note for parents: While the main storyline is fairly kid-friendly (some blood notwithstanding), it’s told by the mysterious and sexy Moll, whose chosen article of clothing is a bed sheet, if anything at all. You rarely see anything more than a nice butt, but it’s worth knowing if your kid hasn’t reached a developmental stage that can handle butts.
BattlePug isn’t exactly a hidden gem, then, but readers looking for comics in the same ridiculous vein as, say, Axe Cop (another of my faves), will find some amusement here. Pug-loving readers like me, however, will likely be adding all subsequent books in the series to their collections. (In fact, I just requested the second from my local comic shop!)
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Note: Holo Writing is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program and, as such, may earn a small commission from any product purchased through an affiliate link on this blog.
Holo Writing featured by Blue Ridge Public Radio!
Whew! It’s been a busy month already! We just returned from Electric City ComiCon in Anderson, SC, and before that, we were at A.A.R.C. – Asheville Anime Regional Convention in Asheville, NC.
While we were there, Blue Ridge Public Radio reporter Davin Eldridge took some time to chat with us and used a bit of the interview in his feature on A.A.R.C.
HERE IT IS if you’d like to give it a listen (or read)! 😀
H.P. at Liberty Con 30!, Part 2 (or, FAQ: Where’d you get that…?)
Last month at Liberty Con, I received so many compliments and questions about my table display in the Author’s Alley that it seemed prudent to compile all my answers in a blog post. So, without further ado, here’s my basic display:
And here are my answers to the oft-repeated question:
Where’d you get that/those…?
1) Bookrack?
I did not expect my bookrack to be the belle of the ball (er, Author’s Alley), but when one displays at a convention that is approximately 1000% authors, many of them indie, I guess that’s bound to happen.
Like most everything I own, this sweet baby came from Amazon: 4-Tiered 18” Wire Rack for Tabletop Use, 2.5” Open Shelves, with Header – Black 119362 (ASIN B018V6XAYM)*.
I’ve been using it for a little under a year and have been quite pleased with it. It’s sturdier than it looks, quick and easy to set up, and holds our 6” x 9” x 1.25ish” books well. At roughly $30, it’s not a bad price, either. My one complaint against it is that, for us, the length-wise fit is a little snug. It’s not tight enough to cause easy damage to the books, but enough to make one slightly nervous when a customer tries to put one back on their own. You’ll also want to keep the box it comes in for transport; though the legs are sturdy once set up, they flail like a muppet before set up.
*Unfortunately at the time of this post, the 4-Tiered version is unavailable, but then brief unavailability is almost a marketing strategy at Amazon. It’ll come back. However, if you’re looking for the 6-Tiered version, you’re in luck! (I have no experience with this one, though, so comment below if you have.)
2) Lollipops?
Now that we have 6 books out, these lovelies have been wonderful for expressing the gist of each title, and if the bookrack was the belle of the ball, the lollipops were its date.
I can’t take credit for the name; that brilliance goes to Dave Schroeder, but that’s absolutely what I’m calling them now.
As for where I got them: ME. I just whipped them up in Adobe InDesign, printed them out on cardstock, laminated them, and cut them out myself. If you’d like to make some for yourself, I’ve attached various files for your use below.
Blank PDF: Lollipops PDF
Blank PNG: 
3) Banner?
I design our banner displays myself and have www.858graphics.com produce the finished banner. We paid a not-insubstantial sum for our 3’ by 8’ roll-up display (roughly $350 plus tax and shipping), but considering the attention it draws to our table, it’s more than paid for itself. The banner is huge but rolls up fairly easily and comes with its own carrying case. (I say fairly easily because you have to be extra careful about holding the banner straight when you lower it down into its base, lest it brush against the side and potentially damage itself. But that mostly comes down to user error, not production quality.)
858 Graphics also earns a special Customer Service mention:
We rush-ordered our banner for The Wizard’s Way close to Anime Weekend Atlanta last year, but a few days before the con, the box arrived at our local UPS center…empty, with absolutely no record or idea of where the banner inside had gone. I called 858 Graphics to check in about that, and they’d literally been on the case before I even called, printed and rushed a new banner at shipping cost only, all in less than 2 days, and such that it arrived literally 2 hours before we were set to leave for AWA. Now that’s service!
4) Bookmarks, Business Cards, Postcards, etc.?
I design all of our promo materials, too, but all of our printing is done through www.gotprint.com, usually on paper type “14 pt. Gloss Coated Cover (C2S) with High Gloss UV” for that shiny flair. They offer a huge variety of print products (and downloadable templates) at very reasonable prices, especially for the quality. We’ve never been disappointed with them.
5) Bookmark, Business Card, Postcard, etc. Holders?
Literally just went to Office Depot and grabbed something cheap-but-professional-looking and probably on sale. I couldn’t find the particular ones I bought on their website, but any business card holder without sides should do the trick. They hold all of our paper promo materials equally well.
6) Buttons?
I design our buttons, too, and have www.purebuttons.com produce them. We’ve always been pleased with them as well. Like Got Print, they offer detailed downloadable templates for you to use when designing your buttons, and they also print runs as small as 50 1.5” square buttons for approximately 55 cents a button (one of our previous orders). Cost, of course, will vary widely by button size, type, print run size, etc., but for author purposes, that’s a very reasonable price.
They also offer a number of other products – magnets, key chains, coasters, etc. – but we haven’t tried any of these yet. Again, if you have, comment below with your thoughts!
7) Book Easels?
Also Amazon: Gibson Holders Two Wire Display Stand, Set of 2, Black (6A-B) (ASIN B000RO6CEC)! They’re pretty simple and durable, so there’s not much to say about them except that they get the job done and fold up well.
8) Tablecloth?
Ok, no one actually asked about this at Liberty Con since I never had reason to use it, but I have been asked about it at other cons before. Here’s a pic of it in action at A.A.R.C. this past weekend:
It’s listed rather clunkily on Amazon as LinenTablecloth 90 X 132-Inch Rectangular Polyester Tablecloth Black (ASIN B008TLJZXK) and prices vary widely by the seller, but generally fall in the under-$20 range.
We bought it in 2014, and it’s held up through every convention we’ve done since without any visible wear. Folding can be a little awkward because of its rounded edges – and I do recommend folding, because just tossing it in a box results in a lot of wrinkles. The wrinkles do smooth out with relative ease, but the less wrinkles you have to smooth to begin with, the better your display will look.
Honorable Mention: T-Shirt?
Finally, it’s not part of my display per se, but I frequently wear it at cons and author appearances, and every time someone asks where I got it because, let’s be real, why wouldn’t you want a T-Shirt featuring a space cat shooting laser beams at the earth while farting a rainbow?
Fortunately for everyone, this beauty is also on Amazon as Laser Eyes Space Cat T-Shirt (ASIN B00C1KAX0Y), though you’ll want to be careful which seller you buy from, as some are selling janky bootlegs, according to the reviews.
Whew! That said, I hope you curious minds find this mound of info helpful. If you have any further questions, feel free to ask away in the comments! 😀
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Note: Holo Writing is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program and, as such, may earn a small commission from any product purchased through an affiliate link on this blog.
H.P. at Liberty Con 30!, Part 1
Whew! Liberty Con 30 ended a week ago, but it’s taken me this long to recover from it – which is a sign of a great con, if I say so myself. (Also a sign that my hotel room had some of the worst soundproofing in the world. To my next door neighbors, congratulations on the child you will inevitably have in nine months.)
Liberty Con in Chattanooga, TN is a unique sci-fi and fantasy convention in that it limits attendance to 700 or so members and nearly half of those members are authors, which means that the fan half has a pretty significant chance of, oh, just running into John Ringo or David Weber or Kevin Hearne or [Insert Other Bestselling Sci-Fi/Fantasy Author Here]. There’s even an event on Sunday (the Kaffeeklatsch) that literally boils down to “Sit Down and Have Coffee With Your Favorite Author.” (I didn’t have coffee with Kevin Hearne, but I totally picked up every Iron Druid Chronicles book I didn’t already own and now have signed copies of EVERYTHING YESSSS.)
The con’s also a smorgasbord of smaller-name-but-equally-awesome authors, like Terry Maggert, whose Banshee I reviewed earlier this year and whose series starters I picked up in the Author’s Alley; Lydia Sherrer, who wrote the other wizard-with-a-talking-animal series at the con – Love, Lies, and Hocus Pocus – which I picked up in full; Dave Schroder, who wrote the Xenotech Support series, which I basically picture as “Office Space In Space With More Tech Support” and so of course picked up the first book in that as well; and Edward F. McKeown, whose Maauro Chronicles I started solely because of that cool anime-styled character on the cover DON’T JUDGE ME.
This was also the first con where I had the opportunity to be an active participant as well as an active nerd, so I did my first reading ever with Beth W. Patterson (author of The Wild Harmonic, which is about shapeshifting were musicians. SHAPESHIFTING WERE MUSICIANS, GUYS). I also shared a panel on “YA SF & F Literature – How to Keep The Young Mind’s Attention in the Age of Video” with Michael J. Allen, Taylor S. Hoch, Nan Monroe, and S. Andrew Swann, wherein I mostly said “Yes!” and “I agree!” because it was Sunday at 1 and I was zonked, y’all. I apologize to all who came to that panel to see me, but I promise, find me at any other convention and I will talk your ears off and probably the ears of your neighbor, too, so bring extras.
I also somehow got lured into scoring the final round of the Killer Cutthroat Spades Tournament at 10:30pm on Saturday night, despite only learning how to play Spades three weeks ago, but such is the surreal experience that is Liberty Con.
If you ever get a chance to go to Liberty Con, whether as author or fan, I highly recommend it. It’s that rare convention that feels less like a hyperactive mob, more like a family reunion where everyone is a nerd, some are authors, and some are literally rocket scientists or nuclear physicists – so, the best and smartest family reunion ever.
Also, if all the questions I got about my Author’s Alley display are any indication, I can apparently hook you up with some sweet goods that will make your author table pop at a con – so many questions, in fact, that I promised a blog post compiling all my answers. If you’re one of those inquisitive authors, keep your eyes on our feed. Part 2, or “FAQ: Where’d you get that…?” is coming soon!
Note: Holo Writing is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program and, as such, may earn a small commission from any product purchased through an affiliate link on this blog.
Fortune’s Pawn – Book Review
One of my pals recommended Fortune’s Pawn by Rachel Bach by describing it as, and I quote, “WTF science fiction.” She was then able to point to the precise (early) chapter where the WTFery begins, and that was all it took to sell me on this book. (Thanks, Carmanita!)
In Fortune’s Pawn, Devi Morris is the best mercenary in the Blackbirds, but she wants to be more. Her greatest ambition is to join the Devastators, the Sacred King’s own force of high-tech armored badasses, and the fastest way to do that is to survive one year working security on the supposedly cursed ship The Glorious Fool. But as adept a fighter as Devi is, she doesn’t know what’s in store for her…
Fortunately for readers, what’s in store for her is 320 pages of awesome power armor, sassily-named weapons, condescending bird people, killer lizard people, sweet space hippies, a hot dude with a polite accent who also happens to be a cook (and maybe something else), and several pesky mysteries that just won’t leave Devi alone.
Fortune’s Pawn wastes no time with its storytelling. By the end of Chapter One, not only do readers know what Devi’s after, but she’s already on The Glorious Fool, leaving the story to rocket forward at the pace one would expect of a book involving armored mercs. The basic plot is simple: There’s something weird about The Glorious Fool and Devi wants to figure out what it is (while still ensuring her shot at the Devastators). And while the action is spectacular – and reason enough to read this book – the characters are what make the story worth it. Though some get more page time than others, all are interesting – or at least intriguing – to read about, and though not all are explored very deeply, they’re written in such a way that one suspects the author has probably created a detailed backstory she just couldn’t fit in the book.
Devi, of course, is the most lovingly crafted, a capable lady merc whose love for her armor is second only to her love for kicking butts with it, but she’s far from a Michelle Rodriguez stereotype. Her ultimate motivator is her ambition, and while she’s not about to let anything get in the way of achieving it, she’s not so ruthless as to be heartless or single-minded about it to the exclusion of all else. It’s not every action novel that would see its armored merc become pals with her meditative space hippie roommate, nor that would allow the same merc a legit, respectful (i.e. not stupid) romance, but Fortune’s Pawn does.
Devi’s relationship with Rupert, The Glorious Fool‘s cook, is one of the best in the novel. When it comes to love, Devi’s not looking for swoon so much as a hot bod, but she finds that and more in Rupert, sometimes to the detriment of both (even if each wants the other). Theirs is a relationship fraught with will-they-won’t-theys that is made no less complex by the secrets surrounding Rupert himself, which Devi wants to solve and Rupert has no interest in disclosing, even after awesome sex. It’s a mature and balanced romance that, for once, contributes significant entertainment to the story and doesn’t distract from its sci-fi action bits at all.
Fortune’s Pawn is hands-down the most entertaining book I’ve read this year. If you love fast-paced sci-fi action, give it a try. You’re in for an explosive treat.
***
Note: Holo Writing is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program and, as such, may earn a small commission from any product purchased through an affiliate link on this blog.
Tender Wings of Desire – Book Review
Sometimes a book comes along that makes you drop everything to read it because it’s obviously the most profound piece of literature you’ll ever encounter. Other times that’s a book that looks like the most hilarious of disasters and it’s free and only 96 pages anyway, so why not? Such was the case with KFC’s Mother’s Day surprise Tender Wings of Desire, which has the distinction of being the only romance I have ever willingly picked up (mostly because, let’s face it, I expected hot, greasy foodporn).
I read this book for what it is, which is an obvious viral marketing stunt, so my standards were not as high as they’d be for books that expect to attract actual readers. I expected ridiculous, highly self-aware characterization, and the aforementioned hot, greasy food descriptions.
This is why I was astonished to read a sweet little regency romance that was far better than it had any right to be. It’s still a rather standard story as period romance goes – The protagonist, Madeline, is a gentry girl with a prettier sister and engaged to a man she doesn’t love, so she runs away to be the master of her own fate and ends up working at a tavern where she meets a charming seaman. I’ll stop here to avoid spoilers, but if you’re familiar with regency tropes and have even sort of glanced at the cover, you already know the spoilers.
Still, what’s predictable for some is familiar and cozy for others – and really, for people who like gentle romances, it’s a satisfying, undemanding read. Once you look past the ridiculous cover, you find that the story stands rather strongly on its own merits, with some unexpectedly insightful bits of writing (two of my favorites being “She remembered her father making jokes about the mysteries of women, but men simply did not know that they too carried mysteries” and “Madeline watched him as he went, feeling like every love song she had ever listened to was real to her now; they were all singing for her”). The romantic interest, of course, is Colonel Sanders, even if the story is slow to call him that, but change a select few details and he could be any other love interest in any other love story.
My only genuine complaints about the book are that the cover is inaccurate – but let’s face it, that hilarious cover is what makes the whole campaign work, even if the illustrator does have a severely mistaken idea of what regency costume and hot sailors look like – and, most egregiously, that it doesn’t even approach being foodporn. 😐 In fact, the only character in the story who cooks isn’t even good at it, so foodie readers don’t even get to drool over delicious non-fried-chicken descriptions. 😐 😐 😐
If there is a sequel next Mother’s Day – and how could there not be, with a campaign as hilarious as this? – there better be some sinfully decadent descriptions of fried chicken.
Overall, Tender Wings of Desire is far from a must-read, and really, it’s not a book that’s meant to be read so much as to amuse the Internet and sell chicken, but readers who do try it will find an unexpectedly cozy, easy romance.
Banshee – Book Review
The world changed when dragons rose from their slumber beneath the earth, but dragons were not the only change to come.
They warned of demons—monsters that would emerge from the very pit of hell to wreak havoc on our world. The dragons had come to select riders who, with the dragons, would provide reinforcements against the coming carnage. But if it takes dragons to defeat those monsters, what hope does humanity have?
Not much, and soon, even with the dragons’ aid, civilization crumbles in the ashes of its former self, burned more with every Killing Moon.
Now only the city of New Madrid remains. It may soon face its own demise from underneath—but not if French Heavener has anything to say about it. With dragon rider Saavin, he’ll travel to the very cave where the demons hide. With her dragon Banshee and the last courageous band of humans, dragons, and riders, they’ll save New Madrid.
Or die trying.
I met author Terry Maggert at LibertyCon several years ago, snagged by the tagline for his then-latest book: “Come for the waffles. Stay for the magic.” Unfortunately, despite combining two of my favorite things in the world, Halfway Dead had not yet released, so instead I opted to try the next best thing, which was “the apocalypse but with dragons,” a.k.a. Banshee.
The reason why this is review is so late is 1) life, which required me to 2) read it twice, which I needed to do anyway because my first reaction was *excited pterodactyl noises.* This is the kind of reaction every author hopes to elicit, but unfortunately it does not make for an articulate review.
My now-articulate response: Banshee is a must-read for fans of dragons, apocalyptic fiction, vividly realized worlds, and competent, capable characters.
Of all the characters, Saavin is the most nondescript, but this is largely because she’s so defined by her role as a dragon rider who gets stuff done—because in this world, if you don’t get stuff done, you die, even if you have a dragon on your side. The more clearly-realized French is equally as competent as she is, though in a different way: A product of Appalachia, French knows how to survive in coarse conditions, especially in terms of gathering and organizing resources, but he’s far from the stereotypical hillbilly one might expect. He carries the novel and keeps most of the cast alive through sheer planning alone, and it was refreshing to read about a “hillbilly” who was not only more than a caricature, but an admirable leader. I’m not sure that I’d follow him into the hell cave, but I’d definitely follow him elsewhere.
Outside of Saavin and French, the cast is huge, but just as well characterized. None of the characters are the bombastic badasses one might expect of a novel like this, but many are badass in realistic ways, from the Paddy-Macs, a family of sharp-shooters, to Harriet Fleming, a New Madrid leader who knows she’s dying from terminal illness but still does her job, despite both internal and external odds. Of course, humans wouldn’t be human without some politics, which is where Colvin Watley and his lackeys come in. He’s a charismatic, folksy type well suited to the personality of his surroundings; he’s also a manipulative, useless a-hole who wants power and influence in New Madrid but doesn’t have the skills to merit it. Still, that hasn’t stopped him from gaining some traction against French, and the conflict there is nearly as intense as the conflict against the demons—perhaps more so, since a Watley victory implies the inevitable loss of the last human outpost, all because of local politics. The balance of apocalyptic conflicts and relatable conflicts are half of what make this novel work so well.
The other half is the world. While I love dragons in all situations, I especially like when authors place them in modern settings because there’s no way for a dragon to make a small impact. A creature as huge and epic as a dragon irrevocably changes the society around it, and it’s always fun to see how authors choose to express those changes. (Well, fun for the reader. In Banshee’s case, humans face so much hellacious* crap that, well, the apocalypse happens. But in their defense, the dragons were trying to stop that.)
That said, Banshee is primarily a world-building novel. The circumstances and history of the setting are as much a part of the novel as the characters attempting to survive it, and though the characters are interesting and the plot moves at a steady pace, it’s frequently interrupted by records from the Bulwark Archival Materials, which provide a look at what’s going in the world outside (or before) the main characters’. On my first read-through, I found these a little jarring, as they slow the momentum of the plot and sometimes don’t contribute to the narrative immediately surrounding them. However, on my second read, I actually enjoyed them quite a lot. They provide flesh to a world that would have been a mere skeleton had the novel dedicated itself to a straightforward storyline, and though not all are strictly necessary to the plot, they season it nicely, providing glimpses of the resources derived from the demons, the origins and personalities of the other dragons, etc.
The cast of dragons is pretty huge, too, and I regret not being able to spend more time with them, especially Banshee. Despite his name being the title of the book, his significance never seems to be greater than that of the other main characters, and I spent the novel hoping for that special detail or scene that would make him stand out above the rest. It doesn’t happen, but then, all the characters are pretty epic anyway, so it’s not much of a loss.
My only other gripe has to do with the minor character Orontes, who pops up to catalyze the story, disappears to the background for most of the rest, and then pops up at the end again for an unexpected twist that I couldn’t justify even after my second reading. However, it is a twist that demands a sequel, to which I say PLZ TERRY MAGGERT I NEED MORE DRAGONS.
In the meantime, now I can start on Halfway Dead.
*Note: Though there are frequent references to hell and demons, the demons are called so less for religious reasons, more because they come from underground and look like the illegitimate love children of Satan and every animal that wants to kill you. It’s about as religious as Doom.
***
Note: Holo Writing is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program and, as such, may earn a small commission from any product purchased through an affiliate link on this blog.
The Empire of Corpses – Anime Review
In The Empire of Corpses, the dead walk the earth. In this reality, the famous reanimation research conducted by Viktor Frankenstein was not chased away with torches and pitchforks, but rather accepted and expanded to the point where corpse engineering is an accepted field of study and the dead are revived and repurposed for tasks the living would rather not do, from fighting wars to performing menial labor. However, these dead are not nearly as functional as The One perfect revival that Frankenstein was able to produce. Soon after perfecting this One, he disappeared, and his notes with him, leaving corpse engineers to conduct the same research themselves. Thus far they’ve only been able to manage shuffling, shambling reanimations with limited capacity for thought and no semblance of a soul.
John Watson aims to fix that. Obsessed with restoring a soul to his deceased (and reanimated) friend Friday, he accepts a mission from the British Secret Service to find Frankenstein’s original notes. But in the process, he uncovers many darker secrets…
WARNING: HERE BE SPOILERS.
When I first heard about The Empire of Corpses, I squealed in fangirlish glee because here was a whirlwind of things I love – Lavish animation! Steampunk! Creepy sci-fi! Anime! – wrapped up in one beautiful burst of a trailer. I mean look at this:
All this to say, I don’t know how you can take a film about steampunk science zombies and make it boring as hell, but this film did it with panache.
That panache is literally the only reason to watch The Empire of Corpses. The mechanical designs in the film, especially the analytical engines and Frankenstein’s book, are wonderfully complex, and the character designs are mostly fun, too, if sometimes distracting:
Literally everything else is a slow-burning mess.
The film had the basis for an interesting world. I really enjoyed how heavily the science relied on Charles Babbage’s analytical engine and variations to make Necroware – corpse technology – work. The very world of the movie also raises several interesting questions: How did people become so cool with the dead walking around and doing their chores? What about the living people that the dead put out of a job? Do the dead have basic human rights? What happens if the dead regain their souls and become sentient? What is the basis of a soul? Entire worlds of moral, economic, and spiritual questions are raised by the simple, wide presence of the reanimated dead.
Unfortunately the movie answers none of them in a satisfying way.
The first third of the movie, though the slowest part, is the best because it’s the part that presents the questions that it actually plans to address – namely those relating to the soul and how to reclaim it. (This is not a movie that is interested in socioeconomic world-building.)
However, the moment an isolated corpse engineer, Alexei Karamazov, kills one of Watson’s traveling companions to make a point about corpse engineering, the movie begins to tumble downhill fast. The deceased Nikolai Krasotkin is a character we’re supposed to like, but haven’t gotten time to know before his death, which is a problem that recurs in this movie. The death itself is also completely stupid and self-righteous. The reveal? In order to create a sentient, at least sort-of-ensouled corpse, one has to first lull and drug a living person, and then skewer their spinal cord with the Necroware so that they die (er, un-die?). Which kind of seems like the opposite of progress.
Nonetheless, Alexei skewers a still-living Nikolai to prove this point to Watson, then driven mad by this knowledge, skewers his own spinal cord with Necroware. Just before he proceeds to tell Watson where Frankenstein’s notes are, and that he must destroy them, all the while dying (or un-dying) all over the poor guy. Because obviously there was no easier way to relay this kind of information. 😐
The last time we see Alexei and Nikolai, they’re reanimated shells of their former selves, reenacting daily life with a creepy, soulless lack of direction. Because obviously the best way to carry out a madness-induced suicide is to do it with a machine that will bring you sort-of back to life. 😐 😐 😐
These egregious flaws-in-logic-for-the-sake-of-sort-of-horror-drama dominate and ruin the rest of the film. Nearly every time a new discovery is made, it raises a question that tears at the threads of the story’s world. Ooo, Lilith Hadaly has tech that can control corpses! Why was this not revealed like an hour ago? Why is it not in widespread use? Ooo, Thomas Edison created an automaton who is not only a babe but sentient enough that she can be sad about not having emotions? 😐 Screw light bulbs, why isn’t he making more of those? If complex automatons are even a thing that can happen, why bother reanimating smelly, stiff dead people at all? The very end of the movie shows Watson hooking himself up to his Necroware in hopes of reconnecting with Friday, which…ok how is that better than just staying alive and sentient and continuing research? I mean, as a viewer, I was glad for the implication that Watson was finally dead-ish (more on that later) because at least he wouldn’t be able to make any more stupid decisions that endanger the whole human race (like NOT BURNING THE FREAKING BOOK even after TWO DIFFERENT PEOPLE almost succeed at TURNING THE WHOLE WORLD INTO FREAKING ZOMBIES WITH IT OMG.)
My whole review literally could have read as this:
With a heaping side of:
As if I didn’t ask why enough, the film is also peppered with more literary and scientific references than it had any reason to include. Frankenstein and Babbage were necessary to the plot, but Thomas Edison? John Watson? Both of those characters could have had different names without it having any effect on the story – except for an after-credits sequence, wherein John Watson (still somehow alive) is revealed to have befriended who else but Sherlock Holmes, and Lilith Hadaly is now going by the name of Irene Adler. This does give the movie the novelty of presenting the one Watson who is more insane than Holmes, but again:
That’s not even the end of it. The climax of the movie is the biggest mess, coming down to a corpse-control transmitter that can apparently transmit to the whole world at once, The One being interested in Frankenstein’s book because Bride of Frankenstein’s soul or something or other, both The One and a mysterious eyepatch dude agreeing that human emotions/souls cause all kind of problems and wouldn’t we all just be better off as lifeless zombie people anyway, and green soul magic wherein Friday regains a soul but it’s Frankenstein’s? Maybe? And then loses it? And then gains one again? And loses it, too? I didn’t even care by that point. The only thing I was really paying attention to was the admittedly badass organ that The One played while doing his soul science BS.
I’m in the minority with this review, most of the ones I read before watching being glowing reviews. To which I say: What secret, hidden version of the movie did you guys watch, and how do I get my hands on it?
The Empire of Corpses had the potential to be an excellent piece of steampunk horror sci-fi, but as is, it’s an example of every way not to be one.
The Reavers are back! (In your headphones.)
One of the most frequently-asked questions we hear at cons is “Do you have audio books?” We’re proud to announce that we can finally answer “YES!”
Earlier this month, we started production on the audio book adaptation of Time Reavers! We’ve been working with the immensely talented Tess Irondale to capture the time-twisting thrills and general mayhem of our favorite monster robot bugs and super-powered teen pest control.
The audiobook will be available for download Summer 2017 on Amazon, Audible, and iTunes. In the meantime, here’s a sneak peak at the first 10 minutes:
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXKK9B5J5Mc&w=560&h=315]
Keep your eyes peeled for the cover reveal, coming soon! 😀