Hello friends! I always post about the new Star Wars books I read (or new to me), but I haven’t talked about non-Star Wars books (or Star Wars rereads) lately, so I thought I’d just run through what’s been entertaining me lately.
Books I’ve read on my Nook:
Blackail, by Scott Hawkins. This book was AMAZING. Bloody, brutal, and so disturbing in so many ways, but amazing. It’s from the point of view of a wolf named Blacktail (as well as some other animals, and a few humans), and it chronicles his epic journey to find the Forest God. He’s sent on this journey by Old Kitty Mother, who has a connection to the supernatural (as cats do). On the way, we see the many ways that human beings abuse animals both domestic and wild. The book has a biblical feel to it, as Blacktail searches for the wild Forest God so he can overtake the humans’ God of Reason. The book is heartbreaking and incredibly moving, but if you don’t like to see or imagine animals ripping each other apart, or humans being horrible to animals, this isn’t for you. If you can get through it, though, you’re treated to a tale of animal redemption that is so incredibly satisfying, it left me stunned.
Sanctuary, by Lamar Giles. I was missing the boys (and Omega) and needed something to read on my Nook, so I re-read this one about The Bad Batch going on a mission to get funds to help Pabu after the tsunami. Naturally, things go sideways in so many ways, but I loved being with my favorite clones again for a time. Here is my original review of the book.
Books I’m currently reading:
The Aftermath Trilogy, by Chuck Wendig. This is a very under-rated Star Wars trilogy that I loved the first time I read it. This is my second read-through, and I still love it. Yes, the first book is slightly annoying from the author’s writing style, but he rectifies it in the second and third books. The novels chronicle the year between the Battles of Endor (which won the war) and of Jakku (which ended it), with a wonderful cast of characters (particularly Sinjir Rath Velus, which I absolutely need to see more of, somehow, yes, please). I’m in the middle of Life Debt as of this writing, and I’m loving every minute of it. If you haven’t checked out the Aftermath trilogy, I highly recommend it. I can’t find any post I made with a review, I think I read it before I even started this blog, which was more than ten years ago! Good time to revisit it.
The Icy Touch, by John Shirley. I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this on the blog, but I absolutely adore the TV series Grimm. It aired on NBC from 2011 to 2017, and my husband and I were obsessed with it. It’s about a Portland detective, Nick Burkhardt, who finds out he’s a “Grimm”, someone who can see the hidden monster-like creatures in some people (called Wesen, pronounced “vessen.”) A whole mythology spins out from this premise over 6 seasons, 22 episodes each. I recently finished a rewatch of the series–it had been long enough since I watched that I remembered most of the big plot twists, but not the details, and it was so fun and almost like watching the first time. Anyway, once I finished the rewatch, I was kind of glad because I needed my life back, lol, but I was sad to say goodbye, too. But I found out there were three novels written during the series: The Icy Touch, The Chopping Block, and the Killing Time, each with a new story for Nick and crew. So of course, I had to get them!
I’m about halfway through the first one, The Icy Touch, and it’s…not great, honestly. The story itself is fine, but it’s the handling of the characters that irritates me. I feel like this author doesn’t know these characters very well, or just wasn’t paying attention. I’m reading along, and I’ll be thinking: this character would never say that! Juliette, Nick’s girlfriend who has just recently been through some traumatic stuff, is nevertheless a strong, very opinionated woman. She would never opine to Nick–“Nick, what are we gonna do?” She is no damsel in distress who looks to her man to fix her problems. It really pissed me off, lol. Anyway, all the characters do or say something completely out of character, and it’s jarring and kind of ruining it for me.
One thing the author does do well is when he’s writing a chapter that takes place in the past, with some of Nick’s Grimm ancestors. These are actually quite good and I want more of them, but there are only two so far, which is disappointing. I think I enjoy them because these are the author’s own characters and he doesn’t have to write characters that someone else created and recreate their voices. Oh well. The other two books are by two completely different authors, and I hope they’re better. Fingers crossed.
Cloak of Deception, by James Luceno. This is my latest Legends Reading Challenge book. I’m about halfway through and it’s been stalled for a while now. I would describe the plot as a political thriller, and….it’s definitely political, but not much thriller. To put it bluntly, it’s incredibly boring, lol. I was excited to read a story with Qui Gon and Obi-Wan in it, but they’re not in it enough. And when they are, there’s nothing new to learn about their relationship–their dialogue with each other is strangely dull (maybe I’m spoiled by Master and Apprentice, by Claudia Gray, a fantastic novel about Qui Gon and Obi-Wan. Probably not fair, as Cloak of Deception was written years earlier when not much was known yet about either of them). So that’s disappointing. The plot involves the Trade Federation and the taxation of trade routes (sound familiar? Ugh, lol) and Sidious’s manipulation of them; Chancellor Valorum’s thin hold on power; a terrorist group called the Nebula Front; and how they all tie together….zzzzzz. I don’t know, it’s just not holding my attention. I’m torn, because I made it halfway through and feel like I should at least finish it, but then again, I’m halfway through and I’m still bored, lol. I’ve enjoyed other James Luceno books (Labyrinth of Evil and Catalyst are great), but Luceno can be, I don’t know, a bit mechanical with his writing? He’s gotta describe every single piece of machinery down to the smallest detail, and how every piece of technology works, and honestly, I just don’t care. It’s a space fantasy, I’m on board already–you don’t have to explain to me how all the tech works, lol. But I haven’t quite given up on it yet. Stay tuned….
Book I tried to read but couldn’t get into:
The Dog Stars, by Peter Heller. I was excited for this one because the movie had just come out and it looked really good. I didn’t get around to seeing the movie, so I got the book on my Nook and eagerly began to read. It’s a post-apocalyptic novel, where there had been a deadly superflu and only a handful of humans are left. It takes place, I think, somewhere near or in the Rocky Mountains, with a 40 year-old man who had lost his pregnant wife, and an older man who had probably been prepping for this day his whole life, as he’s a gun nut with no mercy. I didn’t get too far into the book, however; I just couldn’t get past the writing style. It’s hard to explain, except that the narrative just seemed to spiral around and took forever to get to a point. Maybe I’m getting old, but I prefer books with a straightforward narrative. The movie looked much more interesting, and I regret not seeing it first. I’m not giving up on it forever, though, I might give it another chance. We’ll see.
So that’s what I’ve been reading the past few months (or trying to read). There’s no new Star Wars novel until April of next year–a book about Luke and Leia training together just after the Galactic Civil War, so that should be interesting. Maybe I’ll do a post about the new SW books that have been announced for next year and what I hope to see. Until then, I’ll get back to my reading, and MTFBWY!
