Monday Minis – January 21st

Continuing our new series of mini reviews on Mondays, here is our second set of minis!

Mackenzie’s minis:

Gate Crashers by Patrick S. Tomlinson
Published by Tor Books on June 26, 2018
Genres: Science Fiction
Pages: 320
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 0765398648
Goodreads

On humanity’s first extra-solar mission, the exploration vessel Magellan discovers an alien construction. Deciding that finding advanced alien life is too important to ignore, the ship’s captain chooses to return to Earth while reverse engineering technology far beyond anything back home.

Meanwhile, at mission control, the governments struggle to maintain the existence of aliens a secret while also combating bureaucracy, the military industrial complex, and everyone else who wants a piece of the science that could sky-rocket a species into a new technological golden age.

Little does everyone involved know that the bumbling of a few highly-evolved apes in space hasn’t gone unnoticed, and humanity has put itself on a collision course with a far wider, and potentially hostile, galaxy.

Because, in space, no one can see you screw up…

I’m in a scifi mood lately, and this one was GREAT. I love the premise, and I love the cast of characters and their varying roles. I also really like the idea of communicating science between a ship in deep space and Earth. Felix is a precious boy and probably my favorite character. Allison is also great, a really admirable leader. I thought the book was fairly well paced, and I liked the other points of view – i.e. the short bits where we got perspectives from the different aliens. It was well done, since the main focus was by far on the humans but we still got to see points of view of other civilizations. I really like D’Armic as well!

My main complaint is that it was verrrrry science heavy, too science heavy. Most of the time I really liked it – I like when scifi authors put a lot of thought into the actual tech and science of their world. In this case, I think the author got just a tad carried away, and sometimes it detracted from the excitingness of the plot. Although you could argue describing the tech is an important part of the novel! I think just personally it didn’t work all the time. But I do want to stress that most of the time, it was great and I loved it.

I think that also took away a little from being able to attach to the characters – I like them all, bt didn’t really love any of them.

Overall, I highly recommend this! There are some pretty funny bits, and I think it’s a cool and fun take on first contact.

Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews
Published by Ace on December 31, 2012
Genres: Fantasy
Pages: 365
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 0425264203
Goodreads

When the magic is up, rogue mages cast their spells and monsters appear, while guns refuse to fire and cars fail to start. But then technology returns, and the magic recedes as unpredictably as it arose, leaving all kinds of paranormal problems in its wake.

Kate Daniels is a down-on-her-luck mercenary who makes her living cleaning up these magical problems. But when Kate's guardian is murdered, her quest for justice draws her into a power struggle between two strong factions within Atlanta's magic circles.

The Masters of the Dead, necromancers who can control vampires, and the Pack, a paramilitary clan of shapechangers, blame each other for a series of bizarre killings—and the death of Kate's guardian may be part of the same mystery. Pressured by both sides to find the killer, Kate realizes she's way out of her league—but she wouldn't have it any other way.

If any of you have read Soulless by Gail Carriger, this reminded me a lottttt of that, but this one is set in modern times, and Kate is a bit more snarky/violent than Alexia. Kate is a really fun main character, I like that she’s kickass and takes no shit from anyone, no matter how distinguished or important they are. The cast of other characters is great too, I just wish we got to know them a bit better. I guess since there are so many more books it’s bound to happen in the future. 

My big complaint is that the world is suuuuper confusing. The whole magic and tech thing I didn’t get until pretty far in, and I’m not sure I really understand it. Also, I understood the shapeshifters well but the different take on vampires took me a while to understand. I wish it could have been done better. At the same time, I do like the refreshing take on werewolves vs vampires! It’s interesting to not just have the classic setup. 

Shari’s minis:

Art Matters: Because Your Imagination Can Change the World by Neil Gaiman
Published by William Morrow on November 20, 2018
Genres: Non-fiction
Pages: 112
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 0062906208
Source: Publisher
Goodreads

A stunning and timely creative call-to-arms combining four extraordinary written pieces by Neil Gaiman illustrated with the striking four-color artwork of Chris Riddell.

“The world always seems brighter when you’ve just made something that wasn’t there before.”—Neil Gaiman

Drawn from Gaiman’s trove of published speeches, poems, and creative manifestos, Art Matters is an embodiment of this remarkable multi-media artist’s vision—an exploration of how reading, imagining, and creating can transform the world and our lives.

Art Matters bring together four of Gaiman’s most beloved writings on creativity and artistry:

“Credo,” his remarkably concise and relevant manifesto on free expression, first delivered in the wake of the Charlie Hebdo shootings“Make Good Art,” his famous 2012 commencement address delivered at the Philadelphia University of the Arts“Making a Chair,” a poem about the joys of creating something, even when words won’t come“On Libraries,” an impassioned argument for libraries that illuminates their importance to our future and celebrates how they foster readers and daydreamersFeaturing original illustrations by Gaiman’s longtime illustrator, Chris Riddell, Art Matters is a stirring testament to the freedom of ideas that inspires us to make art in the face of adversity, and dares us to choose to be bold.

Everyone who loves reading needs this book. Everyone who considers themselves a creative needs this book. I can’t tell you the amount of times I have experienced self-doubt and discouragement as a creative. There are good days and there are bad days. Days when your art, often a source of joy and comfort, becomes a source of anxiety and inadequacy. Days when you ask, ‘what’s the point?’ and wonder why you even try. I’ve been in that place.

I needed this book. I needed to hear from someone who’s been there, someone who understands, and someone who continuously fights through it by making art. I loved this book immensely. I want to print pages of it and stick them on my wall to remind myself to keep going. It’s a warm hug, an encouragement, and a rally cry.

The Blinding Knife by Brent Weeks
Published by Orbit on September 11, 2012
Genres: Fantasy
Format: Audiobook
Length: 24h 14m
ISBN: 1607887827
Source: Scribd
Goodreads

The gripping sequel to New York Times bestselling fantasy epic The Black Prism from Brent Weeks.

Gavin Guile is dying.

He'd thought he had five years left--now he has less than one. With fifty thousand refugees, a bastard son, and an ex-fiancée who may have learned his darkest secret, Gavin has problems on every side. All magic in the world is running wild and threatens to destroy the Seven Satrapies. Worst of all, the old gods are being reborn, and their army of color wights is unstoppable. The only salvation may be the brother whose freedom and life Gavin stole sixteen years ago. Read the second book in Brent Weeks's blockbuster epic fantasy series that had Peter V. Brett saying, "Brent Weeks is so good, it's starting to tick me off!"

LightbringerThe Black PrismThe Blinding KnifeThe Broken EyeThe Blood Mirror

For more from Brent Weeks, check out:

Night AngelThe Way of ShadowsShadow's EdgeBeyond the Shadows

Night Angel: The Complete Trilogy (omnibus)Perfect Shadow: A Night Angel Novella (e-only)The Way of Shadows: The Graphic Novel

This is a sequel so I can’t say much without spoiling the series, but I loved this way more than the first book. The Black Prism was really all about worldbuilding, character introductions, and laying the foundation for the story while The Blinding Knife is where it takes off. I loved reading more about the characters (old, new, minor) because not only did I see some interesting developments, but it also felt like seeds were planted for future twists. It ends in such a cliffhanger though that it’s hard not to start the third book right after!

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We hope you’ve enjoyed this set. We’d love to know if you’re planning to pick up any of these books!