Book #136 of 2016: Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion (Warm Bodies #1) Retelling Romeo and Juliet as a zombie love story – in this case between a human named Julie and a zombie narrator who thinks his name might have started with an R – is a clever idea. But author Isaac Marion doesn’t do …
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Book Review: To Hold the Bridge by Garth Nix
Book #135 of 2016: To Hold the Bridge by Garth Nix A mixed bag, as short story collections often are. The Old Kingdom novella that starts the book (and gives it its title) is justifiably the main selling point, and “A Handful of Ashes” was another highlight with its tale of magic that was reminiscent …
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Book Review: The Magician King by Lev Grossman
Book #134 of 2016: The Magician King by Lev Grossman (The Magicians #2) Like the previous novel in this series, The Magician King is about wizards with depression, and it’s a good illustration of how that condition can strip away all sense of joy or satisfaction and leave a person completely listless in every situation. …
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Book Review: The Green Mile by Stephen King
Book #133 of 2016: The Green Mile by Stephen King A well-told story, albeit with one of the most literal and egregious uses of the ‘magical negro’ trope. And it’s neat that Stephen King wrote this as a serial, so that the first chapters were already published before he even knew how the story would …
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Book Review: Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling
Book #132 of 2016: Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling This memoir / humor book is mostly funny, but with periodic unwelcome interruptions for the author to indulge in transphobia, antisemitism, body-shaming, and other such charming behaviors – sometimes without even the excuse of a punchline. I still like …
Book Review: Version Control by Dexter Palmer
Book #131 of 2016: Version Control by Dexter Palmer Version Control is a slow burn of a novel. Although set in the near future and populated with new technologies like self-driving cars, it’s not until halfway through the book that it really becomes clear science-fiction. That might be frustrating in other stories, but Version Control …
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Book Review: Sinner by Maggie Stiefvater
Book #130 of 2016: Sinner by Maggie Stiefvater (The Wolves of Mercy Falls #4) A weird and kind of unnecessary add-on to the Wolves of Mercy Falls trilogy. I’m generally a fan of supporting characters getting to tell their own stories – that’s what’s given us such classics as Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead or …
Book Review: Furiously Happy: A Funny Book About Horrible Things by Jenny Lawson
Book #129 of 2016: Furiously Happy: A Funny Book About Horrible Things by Jenny Lawson A scattered but hilarious memoir about living with mental illness – and about how that isn’t inherently a contradiction in terms. Lawson doesn’t shy away from the low moments that her condition has brought her to (or that her husband …
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Book Review: The Shadow Throne by Jennifer A. Nielsen
Book #128 of 2016: The Shadow Throne by Jennifer A. Nielsen (The Ascendance Trilogy #3) The first novel in this trilogy was definitely the strongest, but this third one resolves the larger story nicely, and it’s always a joy to spend more time with a character like Sage. His ability to think his way out …
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Book Review: The Madman’s Daughter by Megan Shepherd
Book #127 of 2016: The Madman’s Daughter by Megan Shepherd (The Madman’s Daughter #1) I love the idea of a prequel to The Island of Dr. Moreau, particularly one told from the point of view of his daughter (a new invention – there were basically no female characters in the original novel). And that idea …
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