Through Gates of Garnet and Gold by Seanan McGuire

I’m really not sure what to say about this one. I really enjoyed it. Was a nice respite from the world we live in. It was neat to see more about the Land of the Dead and learn how the statues came to be.

I knew, even before she was revealed, that Jill was going to be the antagonist. Just had that feeling as Nancy told the others what was happening… Jill’s revelation was completely unsurprising.

I’m always sad these are so short, but at the same time, I’m very glad things aren’t drawn out too much. Through Gates of Garnet and Gold was a solid entry into the Wayward Children series… also felt a little like an ending, given the very end I won’t be spoiling. It’s fine if that’s the case, too. 

Favorite Lines

"A child is a vessel for wanting—and snot. Lots of snot in you average kid." - Sumi

"Toddlers have to wear coats in the winter, children need to get enough vitamin C to skip scurvy, and teenagers sometimes need to talk about our feelings. It’s the medicinal part of being a person." -  Sumi

"No one gets to decide for you what living looks like," snapped Nancy. "Life is supposed to be made up of the choices you make for yourself."

Cerulean Sins by Laurell K. Hamilton

2025 Reread Review: I'm gonna go ahead and say there are spoilers past the first paragraph, so... you've been warned.

Cerulean Sins honestly kind of feels like a bunch of stuff was thrown at the wall to see what stuck in order to form a semi-meandering plot that went on for too long. I understand there were some loose ends that needed tying up from previous books and character work that needed doing... but... I'm going to repeat myself and say that it felt too long. It felt like a lot and then someone threw the kitchen sink in and the kitchen sink was too much.

The entirety of the vampire politics thing was just so, so tiring. I hate vampire politics. Nonsense rules on top of rules… much like dealing with royalty, I’d imagine. Old school royalty, with the power to kill you as soon as look at you. Musette is a little bit hilarious and a lot annoying. Both she and Belle Morte were jealous of Jean-Claude and Asher which just led to... basically nothing. I suppose that's a bit of a spoiler, but random power-creep happened and suddenly Belle can't touch Jean-Claude because of the rules. Also, how does one suddenly become soudre sang and not even notice? How... what... the way these vampires work is occasionally perplexing. I don't remember this ever being brought up in a satisfactory way and now it'd gonna bug me.

I forgot how goddamn pushy Belle Morte is, the jealous bitch. She also must not have a Human Servant or specific Animal to Call, if she’s able to give Anita the marks. Feels very weird for such an old and powerful vampire not to have either. I was questioning the timing of Belle suddenly seeming to want a Human Servant, but it is heavily implied she's planning to go after Marmee Noir so... guess it makes sense to want to add a bit more power to your base at that point. Still, the timing felt weird.

Oh yes, Marmee Noir is becoming a thing now. Got the interesting vampire/lycanthrope hybrids hanging around, though, again, something that got thrown in that isn't really ever addressed again, that I remember. I can't really discuss much about this because it's ridiculously early days and everything that's popping to my mind is spoilery for later in the series. But yeah, Marmee Noir, put a big ol' pin in that.

Dolph can very seriously take a flying leap off a very tall building. A) if someone tells you they’re too sick to come in, you leave them the hell alone. B) you don’t get to act like a raging lunatic in a professional environment, even if you just saw something absolutely horrendous. His whole blow-up surrounding Jason was also super uncomfortable. And look, I get that we don't really get a whole lot of what is actually going on with Dolph, because I bet it's a lot more than the two things we get from him, but like... he hardcore crashed out at work, causing the largest scene we've ever seen him cause, and... Dolph needs to take a very long break from his job and get some goddamn therapy. He does take a leave of absence after this, but I still needed to rant about it.

I think the line “You’re always sorry, Richard” is profound. He just stuck his whole stupid head in it this book. I think the only thing I can say that I haven't said before is that his decision to "take back the wolves" was just stupidly timed. I agree with Anita, don't pull that shit when the enemies are at the door, dumbass. Anita may not hate Richard, but I certainly do.

Not sure how I feel about Anita and Asher’s “come to Jesus” bit. On the one hand: yes, set and keep those boundaries. On the other hand: Asher definitely has a point, which Anita admitted to Nathaniel earlier. She keeps back parts of herself and that’s not necessarily great. And also, Jean-Claude can keep his head enough in the moment to reiterate consent, but Asher can’t? I dunno, the whole thing is messy. Anita is woefully inexperienced with messy at this point. I also think some of my feelings about this are colored by Asher’s later behavior, which is not great so… yeah.

When it comes to the ending of the book and the feeling of it being too long... I got through the climax of the vampire politics and the story really felt over. It just did. But there were those murders that didn't have a resolve... and then the baggage they ended up coming with... just... I wanted the book to be over and it wasn't. Spent another 11 chapters getting to the actual end. I get that it needed to be resolved and it needed to be resolved in this book, but it just felt detached from everything else, to be completely honest. I know part of that is also a function of the police side of things being so detached from the rest of Anita's life... but yeah. Felt tacked on, really.

So yeah... Cerulean Sins felt too long, even though it probably wasn't. There was a bunch of random setup here and a bunch of semi-random pay-off from Obsidian Butterfly. I hate Belle Morte. I hate Richard. So ready to move on to the next one. 

Favorite Lines

"Non, you would possess me again, and love is not about possession." - Jean-Claude

"No, but you assume that if I'm any good it has to be because a man taught me. That's so sexist." - Anita Blake

"If you throw the furry through a windshield, do they not still bleed?" - Anita Blake

"Legends say that the Amazons chopped off a breast to make them better at archery. I don't believe that. I think it's just another example of men thinking women can't be a great warrior without cutting away her womanhood, symbolically, or otherwise. We can be great warriors; we just got to pick the equipment a little differently." - Anita Blake

"If the law doesn't apply evenly to everybody, then it doesn't work at all." - Anita Blake 

Moreta: Dragonlady of Pern by Anne McCaffrey

Well, I had barely remembered anything from Moreta: Dragonlady of Pern from when I read it at 12… I think I was 12, anyway. The librarian who recommended it to me was a little apprehensive because of the absolute nothing of a sex scene. Speaking of, the thing I did remember was Moreta and Alessan being a thing. The rest… not a lick of memory.

Oooofffff, this epidemic storyline hits differently now. I find it really interesting that Pern manages to do such a better job at getting everyone vaccinated than we seem to be able to do with much more advanced tech. I mean, this was Sci-fi from the 80s, so McCaffrey was clearly more hopeful and hadn’t experienced the ridiculousness that was COVID, but still… This is also the third storyline of the Pern chronology to deal with an epidemic. The last two were written well after this, but it is worth noting.

The speed at which this disease jumped species, even if they’re all Earth-ancestry species is super concerning… not that anyone has brought that up at all. Though maybe it was something the Colonists brought with them, jumped species to the cats, then was able to jump back fairly quickly… still really concerning and not talked about at all. Just waved away with a “it’s zoonosis.” Okay then.

First time in the chronology there’s actually a queen’s wing. That was fun to see. Actually, getting more with the queens was fun. I don’t remember Lessa, for example, having to sleep off the Hatching Grounds due to Ramoth clutching. So that was neat. I love Orlith.

I actually quite liked getting more info on Falls and the aftermath. Taking care of injured dragons is more interesting than Plagued ones or humans. Very glad Moreta was able to pass some of her dragon healing knowledge on.

What is it with Fort Weyr producing surly Weyrleaders?? Sh’gall, D’gan… wtf. Although the real curmudgeon of this book was M’tani of Telgar, so that’s a bit of a difference.

Not sure this late-introduced mystery of Rill needed to be a thing. Although what might have been a typo already gave away who it is… if it’s relevant in later books, chronologically speaking.

Anyway, Moreta: Dragonlady of Pern was a lot of fun. The characters were engaging, the pacing was good, and the ending was surprising.

Surprise Baby Review!

Adulthood Is a Myth by Sarah Andersen

I knew this collection was going to be 99% relatable and it was. I’m gonna go hide in a blanket pile with my books now. 

GoodReads Reading Goal

Happy New Year! Just wanted to note that, as it is January 1st, I have set my Reading Goal at 100 books. the last couple of years, I've read well over 100 books, so I feel this goal is achiveable, even without an injection of 20 anthologies. 😜

Also, my reviews for today and tomorrow are from 2024 and don't count toward this year's goal. ✌

Wolf-Speaker by Tamora Pierce

Technically a ReRead Review, though I remember nothing from my first read.

I honestly don't have a lot to say about Wolf-Speaker. It was kinda fun and took me a lot longer to read than even I was expecting... which is more a function of the holidays and a new Pokemon game coming out while I was reading than anything else... but yeah.

Daine learns a lot more about her powers in this book. She's got to learn and use them on the fly, as there's not really any time for her to rest while dealing with the whole Yolane/Tristan situation. It's interesting and I'm kind of glad Daine didn't have someone actively teaching her how to use her powers. The organic way she figures them out just makes sense for her.

I feel like all the human characters here were rather flat, even Maura, who we spent the most time with. Tristan and Yolane were just kind of there in the background doing all their planning and scheming for most of the book. Tait turned out to be an alright human. Actually, now that I'm thinking about it, most of the characters were pretty flat. The animals were just doing animal things and finding Daine's intervention in their lives fun. Tkaa was a fun new addition, but he mostly served as a way to get Numair the info Daine was collecting. Even Kitten didn't really do much aside from break into parts of the castle toward the end. I'm kind of glad Daine has less of an issue with Stormwings now, but Stormwings are altogether not the best "people" as it were so... yeah. Much shrugging in the character department.

I had a big issue with the way the animals speaking was written. I feel like the speech should have been in italics or bracketed in some manner that made it clear a character was speaking as opposed to it just being more narration.

So yeah, Wolf-Speaker was just alright. Other than Daine's "power up," I feel like the story was fairly flat, though not filler. 

Favorite Lines

"I am a riding horse, not a god, was Spot's answer." - Spot

"Magelet, one thing I have learned is that humans cling to their first knowledge of you, particularly if they have no experience of you once you've changed." - Numair Salamin

"There's no such thing as a being who's pure evil, retorted the mare. Just as no creature is al good. They live according to their natures, just like you." - Cloud

Wishing Everyone A Very Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year!

Reviews Batch 12

Ever After by Kim Harrison
Originally Posted to GoodReads: October 7, 2020

This was a lot. A lot went on and it felt like chaos. I’m so very glad a certain villain is FINALLY dealt with. He bugged me to no end. Was not a fan in the slightest.

Also, I just want to take a moment to talk about the book cover. Specifically Rachel’s hair on the cover. What. The. Bloody. Hell. Is. With. The. STRAIGHT. Hair? It’s said MULTIPLE times throughout the books that Rachel’s hair is crazy curly. So why is it straight on the cover? And the next cover, too? What. The. Hell. This bothers me so, so much. Figure out how to draw friggin curly hair, for the love of whatever deity you choose. 

Alice In Wonderland by Lewis Caroll, adapted by Eliza Gatewood Warren
Originally Posted to GoodReads: October 14, 2013

I've probably been spoiled by the Disney movie adaptation and pretty much all the other adaptations I've seen, but this book was seriously lacking in actual storyline.

 

 

The Hob's Bargain by Patricia Briggs
Originally Posted to GoodReads: October 22, 2018

Life is too good for bad books and this one... while not completely unreadable, is not one of the good ones. I only got halfway through it -- to a part where the perspective keeps randomly shifting from first to third between a pair of characters -- and I just can't anymore. It's definitely more tell than show in terms of narration and the main character is just bland, visions or no visions.

Storm Cursed by Patricia Briggs

Storm Cursed has a lot more government shenanigans in it that I was expecting… which was, like, none. Most urban fantasy books that have such far-reaching, public “fantasy” world stuff like this one keep that back-room government stuff off the stage, so to speak. We get told things happen, but not actually shown any of the inner workings. I’m not sure whether I like it or not.

All the witch stuff is also interesting. We’re definitely lacking in world-building on that front. I don’t even think we’ve gotten a description of the white, gray, and black distinctions before. I’m very glad Adam and Mercy have taken a hard stance against black witches. Don’t need any of that mojo around.

The somewhat revelations about Sherwood, or at least his wolf, are… interesting, to say the least. A witchborn werewolf isn’t something I’ve ever come across in any of the books I’ve read. Harry Potter does not count because reasons. But anyway, that whole thing was tragic, in its own way.

I definitely enjoyed the twistiness of Storm Cursed. I had fun reading it and I feel that it’s another solid Mercy entry.

Favorite Lines

"Epic," she said with a wry glnce at Ben. "Epic it is. I think I will probably quit apologizing." Then she said, "I suppose I'll find some other way to irritate you." - Mary Jo

"Just because something is stupid doesn't mean it is not true," said Stefan

"Sometimes there us no way to make things better. There is only making it through." - Mercy Hauptman

"Politicians have to lie," Adam said. "It's written into their black souls. It's only a problem when they begin to believe their own lies."

Spelunking Through Hell: A Visitor's Guide to the Underworld by Seanan McGuire

Yet another Incryptid book that has be in tears at the end. Spelunking Through Hell was a bit of an emotional roller coaster culminating in some very happy tears. I made the mistake of reading the fist few lines of the blurb for Backpacking Through Bedlam when it arrived at my apartment and, well, that made parts of this plot ridiculously easy to telegraph. Kind of akin to rereading, where you know who the mysterious, largely unnamed characters are going to be. Also made Sally not a surprise. This is why I don’t read blurbs after the first book if I can help it.

Spelunking Through Hell is a weirdly technical book, for all that dimension hopping is usually not met with technical descriptions in most of the fantasy I’ve encountered. It doesn’t exactly stray into the hard science-fiction aspects, but it is close. That, and the description we get of flensing… well, let’s just say I’m glad my brain’s been shielding me from the gorier mental images that could conjure up. Aside from the technical bits, I enjoyed getting to visit other worlds with other “cryptids,” the designs of which I’m also in love with. Ithaca is definitely my favorite of these worlds. So sue me, I love my Greek mythology and stuff based on it.

Interesting that the luck thing has to be explained again. I mean, not completely, since Alice (and the rest of the Price-Healy-Harrington-etc clan) have no idea that Frances Brown was the daughter of a Luck cryptid. But yay for the refresher as to luck being able to be stripped. Basically incorporating that into the pneuma stripping thing was a good call, I think. Made all that easier to digest.

The demise of Naga was hardcore. I won’t say more than that, but wow. I really find everything Naga did utterly despicable and the conversations around consent really important. After all, I really don’t think consent given under as much distress as Alice was clearly under in the first place should be taken as consent at all.

We haven’t really gotten a lot of Thomas Price as a character up until now. He did appear in a couple of the short stories available on Seanan McGuire’s website, so I did kind of have an idea of how we was as a person. I am glad to see his time in the dying dimension didn’t strip him of his ideals and such. Alice deserved to not have to go through that kind of heartbreak. Sally, to finally get back to her, was mostly delightful. I like her badass-ness and her protectiveness of Thomas. That last bit makes a lot of sense given how she was apparently the same way with James when they were kids. I’m looking forward to getting to know her more in Backpacking Through Bedlam.

I mentioned in the beginning that Spelunking Through Hell had me crying happy tears. This paragraph will contain spoilers because it was the epilogue that did it. The Aeslin Mice and Kevin having their little reunions was really what did it. I love the Mice and really missed them in the last couple of books. They weren’t super around for Sarah and since Alice didn’t have them this time… anyway, they were missed. Thomas’ reaction to them was basically mine, especially as soon as one of his clergy showed up. I hope the unaffiliated novice basically starts Sally’s clergy, since she’s definitely sticking around. And man, who wouldn’t be in tears watching a father and son reunite? I’m tearing up just writing about it. Just… ah! I was half expecting Spelunking Through Hell to end on a cliffhanger and boy am I glad it didn’t. So satisfying.

And Sweep Up the Wood: Uh, so… that was maudlin. And I guess it’s great to “see” Alice and Thomas’ first foray into their relationship. I uhm… have no other words.

Favorite Lines

"I like my torso. It's where I keep my lungs." - Alice Price-Healy

"We're basically swamps that decided to go for a walk one day and haven't figured out yet that it's ridiculous thing for a swamp to do." - Alice Price-Healy

"Sure, it had failed when Thomas tried to shoot me, but the first rule of gun safety is that no gun is unloaded unless you verify it for yourself. The second rule of gun safety is that it still isn't unloaded, because invisible bullets can happen to the best of us." - Alice Price-Healy

"Raising your daughter to think that her only value is in sitting pretty and pristine on a shelf somewhere doesn't get you a functional person, it gets you a monster in waiting." - Laura Campbell

"That's another way trauma works. For every bruise you can see, there's another spot where it's just all about the internal bleeding." - Alice Price-Healy

Intrigues by Mercedes Lackey

Slightly Spoilery Review

I said in my Foundation review that Collegium Chronicles would be a good place to point Harry Potter fans. I still stand by that, but I will definitely say that Collegium Chronicles ramps up the darkness much quicker than Harry Potter did. Intrigues literally has Mags getting depressed to the point of suicide. So if you are going to recommend Collegium Chronicles to anyone, you might want to warn them about that. It’s far more visceral than even Vanyel’s descent in The Last Herald Mage. I wasn’t expecting Mag’s depression at all.

While kind of on the subject of Harry Potter, I’m going to come out and say that Kirball is much more fun to read than Quidditch. It would definitely be muuuuch harder to turn into a real-world sport (impossible, really, because Companions), but it’s much more fun to read. I liked the way the teams were structured and I can definitely see how it’s fully living up to its dual role as war training. I do hope the players eventually get to play different positions on the team, because I’m sure there would be instances of Companions being taken out of commission and such that at least the Heralds would need to know how to deal with.

All that aside, I very much enjoyed Intrigues. It definitely lived up to that title. Everyone is much more in their own little worlds within the Collegium at this point, at least as far as Mags’ group of friends. Bear’s got his family stuff to deal with; Lena’s finally getting a bit of attention from her father; and the Kirball teams have been established. It actually kind of reminds me of the Buffy episode “Earshot” in which Mags is essentially playing the part of Jonothan… everyone’s too wrapped up in their own crap to really help Mags deal with his. Which, shame on the Mindhealers for not calling him in for therapy or something. Poor kid.

Also shame on all the Farseers for letting their visions get out. I feel like that stuff should be strictly controlled as to who gets to know what the visions contain. It obviously only causes strife. They need a better system that does not lead to a student being ostracized the way Mags was.

Of course, Mags’ depression wasn’t overly egregious or just there to serve the plot. I feel like anyone would sink into a depression after such a public ostracism and then rift with their only friends… and what happened with Dallen. Dallen’s injury definitely broke the camel’s back… no puns intended. The whole situation was just bad from start to finish.

Anyway, except for the depression part of the book, I felt Intrigues was an enjoyable read. The ante is definitely upped in a satisfying way. I only wish Mags a better second year at the Collegium. 

Favorite Line

::We’re none of us quite so sure of our place in the world that we can’t be rocked off our feet by bad times. It’s the getting back up again that counts. Not that you fall, but getting back up again counts for more in the long run.:: - Dallen

Ride the Storm by Karen Chance

A Mostly Spoiler-Free Review

Okay so, this is the book that has made me decide to drop the Cassie Palmer series. I was intensely frustrated throughout and that's not a good thing. There were just too many moving pieces and too much to keep straight and just... bleh. This isn't the first time I've been frustrated reading a Cassie book and I doubt it will be the last, so I'm stopping. No more Cassie Palmer books for me.

Frustration the First: No one talks to anyone they should really be talking to. Jonas doesn't talk to Cassie about decisions he's making in regards to her court. Cassie doesn't tell anyone what she's up to, ever, aside from Rosier. Neither of them talk to Pritkin/Emrys/Myrriden about what they're actually doing there. The Pythias refuse to talk to Cassie about why she keeps popping back Arthurian times because apparently knowing what other Pythias might be up to is just completely out of their job description? We'll get back to that.

Frustration the Second: Cassie's attention is both split and not and it just ends up being a mess. Cassie's entire mission for the past three books has been rescuing Pritkin, full stop. However, her present keeps pulling her attention away from that so we have to deal with that instead of rescuing Pritkin. Add to that the whole Pythian intervention thing which keeps sending Cassie back to the present and we've spent three books attempting to rescue Pritkin. I'm real tired of all of it.

Frustration the Third: Pythias do not talk to each other apparently. Unless they need help sending "rogues" back to their own times because they're "messing up the timeline." Only... because you've neglected to actually talk to each other about, I dunno, your shared responsibility, you keep managing to fuck up one Pythia's attempts to save the timeline? It's my understanding that not saving Pritkin completely erases him from the timeline and therefore would allow Apollo to come wreck shit because Cassie wouldn't have Pritkin around to help her stop Apollo. And none of the prior Pythias even wants to question Cassie about why Cassie's doing what she's doing. None of them. They just keep locking her up or sending her home and refusing to question her. It's insanity. I understand not wanting to fuck up the timeline by knowing too much about the future, but I figure a) there are ways to vet an actual Pythia (Cassie stumbles upon one) and b) you maybe want to know what the fuck is going on and maybe help other Pythias not fuck up the timeline too badly in the process. Maybe? Just a little?

Frustration the Fourth: Mircea. Yeah... Mircea, it turns out, is definitely just as gross as he's always been in regards to Cassie. First, the geis thing, which has been resolved but was still hella gross. And now, we find out his real reason for setting the geis in the first place and... yeah, it's stupid. Like, I get it, I do, you loved the woman and she's dead and apparently you're fixated on bringing her back by any means necessary. But man, that vampire fixation is just not great. It's also the first time we're hearing about vampires getting fixated, so, ya know, also somewhat annoying from my stand-point. Thanks, I hate it. Makes the whole Mircea/Cassie thing even worse. And again, tired of it.

A thing I liked: Cassie figuring out some stuff regarding her parents. That was a nice little side-trip. Ultimately futile for Cassie's actual goal, but it wasn't bad.

So yeah, I'm just too frustrated with the Cassie Palmer series to continue. This was fun while it lasted, until it wasn't. I will be continuing on with the Dorina Basarab side of things. Dory tends to be less frustrating so I'm crossing my fingers it stays that way.

Frostbitten and Waking the Witch by Kelley Armstrong

Frostbitten by Kelley Armstrong

A Spoiler Free Reread Review

Originally Posted on GoodReads: May 12, 2022

Back on form with this one after the travesty that was Living With the Dead. I enjoyed this one so much I barely put it down. Elena’s gone through a lot of growth since Bitten, for which I am grateful. She’s much more enjoyable as a character now than she was at the beginning. I’m also glad her relationship with Clay has steadied and I’m sure motherhood did some good, too.

The plot was rather bog-standard, really, but I felt like it was lifted by Elena having to work through some issues during it. Also the addition of the new supernatural race was good. Always nice to see world building even this late in the series run.

Really my only complaint about this book is the cover. The one with Elena and a wolf on the front with the blue-grey background. God awful coloring on her hair. It’s muuuuch too yellow. Bugs me so much.

I was actually pleasantly surprised by the lack of child-focus. This is the first book after Elena had the twins, so I think I was expecting them to have more focus than they did, maybe even be part of the overall plot somehow… cuz that’s how it tends to go in series where the main character has a child. This was not the case. Sure, the twins were mentioned and Clay and Elena talked to them on several occasions, but there wasn’t any “motherly instinct” crap that can often bog down stories about mothers. I found that refreshing. 

 

Waking the Witch by Kelley Armstrong

A Spoiler Free Reread Review

Originally Posted on GoodReads: May 19, 2022

In all honesty, the ending of this book makes much more sense (as in has actual lead-up) if you’ve read the short stories/novellas in Armstrong’s anthology catalogue. Even though this is my second read of the book, I didn’t remember what happened, and so actually spent some of the book wondering when … was going to show up. That’s all I’ll say about that though. Highly recommend reading those anthologies in chronological order though.

Anyway, Waking the Witch is perfectly serviceable as a mystery novel. The supernatural stuff is largely incidental. Definitely better than Living With the Dead, though. More entertaining.

I do feel the need to mention that, at the time I’m rereading this, the overwhelming whiteness of this series is poking at me. Poked at me real hard when Savannah offhandedly remarks on her independently wealthy status. Hope and Lucas are really the only main characters in the series who aren’t white, but they’re also ridiculously wealthy (even if Lucas likes to pretend he isn’t)… the privilege is rearing its head in my consciousness this time around. Doesn’t stop me from enjoying The Women of the Otherworld, but it’s definitely on my mind.