Book 246 of 2017: Shardik by Richard Adams (Beklan Empire #1) I loved this 1974 story of a Stone Age civilization treating a giant bear as the incarnation of their god, a sprawling feat of worldbuilding that feels wholly different from the author’s better-known classic Watership Down. It’s slow but engaging, and I appreciate the …
Author Archives: Joe Kessler
Book Review: The Boy on the Bridge by M.R. Carey
Book #245 of 2017: The Boy on the Bridge by M.R. Carey Among the great strengths of author M.R. Carey’s The Girl with All the Gifts are its unique viewpoint character and the gradual way that it eases readers into some key realizations about her world. But given those strengths, it’s hard not to feel …
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Book Review: Exit, Pursued by a Bear by E. K. Johnston
Book #244 of 2017: Exit, Pursued by a Bear by E. K. Johnston Fiction about rape can easily turn maudlin, but E. K. Johnston has written a tightly-focused story of a high school cheerleader who refuses to consider herself a victim, even as she struggles to overcome the trauma. It’s a tricky balance, and sensitive …
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Book Review: La Belle Sauvage by Philip Pullman
Book #243 of 2017: La Belle Sauvage by Philip Pullman (The Book of Dust #1) A fairly underwhelming prequel to Philip Pullman’s classic His Dark Materials trilogy, La Belle Sauvage consists mainly of characters trading custody of the baby Lyra Belacqua like a tiny squalling MacGuffin. There’s too much focus on setting up the events …
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Book Review: Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo
Book #242 of 2017: Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo (Grisha #2) Two books in, I’m still pretty lukewarm on this trilogy. It’s good enough to keep reading, especially for the extra background on author Leigh Bardugo’s superior semi-sequel series Six of Crows, but far too much time is spent on the main character’s love …
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Book Review: Days of Blood & Starlight by Laini Taylor
Book #241 of 2017: Days of Blood & Starlight by Laini Taylor (Daughter of Smoke & Bone #2) The first novel in this trilogy grew on me as it went along, its early Twilight trappings of a high school girl falling in love with a beautiful inhuman stranger giving way to something rich and dark …
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Book Review: Something from the Nightside by Simon R. Green
Book #240 of 2017: Something from the Nightside by Simon R. Green (Nightside #1) I loved Simon R. Green’s Nightside series back in high school, when it was my first introduction to the urban fantasy genre. These books tell hardboiled detective stories in a weird world of gods and monsters, sort of like a cross …
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Movie Review: Big Trouble (2002)
Movie #21 of 2017: Big Trouble (2002) This is a family favorite, but it had been several years since I watched it last. Sometimes things like that can age poorly, but this one is still great, and the comedy holds up really well. I’m always surprised that this movie isn’t better known, but I guess …
TV Review: Stranger Things
TV #47 of 2017: Stranger Things I know I’m about a year behind on this, but this show was a lot of fun. It wears its 80s homages right there on its sleeve, and although it never quite deconstructs those inherited tropes as much as I’d like, it at least manages to surprise me with …
Book Review: I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sánchez
Book #239 of 2017: I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sánchez Julia Reyes is the best sort of YA protagonist, flawed but sympathetic and with an incredibly distinctive voice. She struggled under the weight of her immigrant parents’ expectations even before her older sister died, but now everything feels like it’s …
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The Lesser Joke: book reviews and more 