Word Slinging & Life Wrangling

Originally published at Sherry D. Ramsey. You can comment here or there.

The Iron Wyrm Affair by Lilith Saintcrow

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Wow, I have to say, I loved this book! It pulled me in quickly and kept me reading voraciously until the end. Unique characters, a fully-developed steampunk world, and a complex plot–what’s not to love?

So, why only four stars? It’s really a 4.5 for me. The only minor complaints I had: there’s a lot thrown at the reader at the outset, and you really have to work a bit to keep up with everything that’s going on and to make sense of the world and the magic system. I didn’t find it a problem, but (my editor persona coming to the fore) some readers would make heavy work of it. Also, after a while I found the many internalizations of the main characters a bit wearying–just a little overdone. To be fair, the characters have a lot of secrets that they really can’t talk about but that are integral to understanding them, so the author does need to find some device to let the reader in. It just got distracting by the end.

However, do not let these editorial nit-picks steer you away from this marvelous book! My delight in it was dampened only by the realization that I have to wait a bit yet for the next Bannon and Clare adventure.



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Originally published at Sherry D. Ramsey. You can comment here or there.

Imperium by Nicholas Olivo

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I hadn’t heard about this book until I saw a friend give it a high recommendation, so I put it on my reading list. It took me a little while to get around to it, but I totally enjoyed it when I did! If you like urban fantasy, myths, gods, supernatural creatures, and secret societies, this book is definitely for you. Despite throwing a lot of elements into the mix, the author does a great job of making it all work together, and keeping it fun and fast-paced. While the threats to the MC are real, this is not a dark and brooding book, which I particularly liked. The MC has some very interesting things going on in his life, which make for lots of nice complications. I’ll look forward to reading more of the Caulborn series.



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Originally published at Sherry D. Ramsey. You can comment here or there.

White Heat by M.J. McGrath

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was a nicely complex mystery, set in unique and intriguing surroundings. I also really liked the characters–they came across as real people with complex emotions and motivations. The main character was feisty and strong, yet she had her weaknesses, as well. It was an addictive read (listen) and kept my interest right to the end. A great read!



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