Girl on Book Action: Boneshaker by Cherie Priest

Boneshaker by Cherie Priest
ISBN: 9780765318411

From the back cover:

In the early days of the Civil War, rumors of gold in the frozen Klondike brought hordes of newcomers to the Pacific Northwest. Anxious to compete, Russian prospectors commissioned inventor Leviticus Blue to create a great machine that could mine through Alaska’s ice. Thus was Dr. Blue’s Incredible Bone-Shaking Drill Engine born.

But on its first test run the Boneshaker went terribly awry, destroying several blocks of downtown Seattle and unearthing a subterranean vein of blight gas that turned anyone who breathed it into the living dead.

Now it is sixteen years later, and a wall has been built to enclose the devastated and toxic city. Just beyond it lives Blue’s widow, Briar Wilkes. Life is hard with a ruined reputation and a teenaged boy to support, but she and Ezekiel are managing. Until Ezekiel undertakes a secret crusade to rewrite history.

***

My Thoughts:

When I decided that I would write a review for this book, I sat down and tried really hard to come up with some negative things to say about it, because I felt that in order to be properly critical I had to have something negative to say. And when it comes down to it there were some minor things that I did not enjoy, and I’ll get to those in a moment, but I have to say that overall, this book was simply good fun. I enjoyed reading it immensely and not just because it has zeppelins, air-pirates, zombies and gas-masks, although all those things combined played a large part in my enjoyment, I really can’t deny that.

So let me get my few gripes out of the way so I can get back to talking about how much I like this book. Really, the only thing that let me down was the story surrounding the main villain. I don’t want to get into too much detail for fear of spoiling the book, but the way that Briar acts and the ultimate outcome of this conflict just didn’t do it for me. I would have preferred a little more mystery or some sort of unforeseen plot-twist, and by unforeseen I really mean unforeseen. So yes, the plot surrounding Briar and the villain was really a letdown for me in an otherwise wonderfully imaginative book.

Now that the griping is done with I will return to my adoration of this book. I found that the pacing was great and kept me turning pages way past my bedtime. It was a quick, enjoyable read. Cherie Priest does a great job of creating atmosphere throughout and there were parts that made me feel claustrophobic and panicked and my heart was pounding as I read, which I have to admit doesn’t happen as often as it should when I’m sitting down with a book on a dreary winter day. I was also completely smitten with the re-imagining of history and the detail of the world created in the process. The novel felt well-researched and carefully thought-out, and I never once sat back and said to myself “You know, I don’t think that’s possible even in an alternate history.” Complete suspension of disbelief: achieved.

Lastly, this book is an aesthetic treat: the cover is gorgeous and the book is printed in a sepia tone rather than a straight up black and white tone. So personally I would suggest that even if you don’t want to read it you should go find it at a bookstore and look at it and peek in at the pages, but I have a bit of a book fetish, maybe that idea just creeps you out.

I’d have to say that out of the books I read in 2009, Boneshaker rates second only to Caitlin R. Kiernan’s The Red Tree for me, although the two can hardly be compared. They just stand out as really great works of fiction each in their own way.

The final word is that if you want to read something amazingly fun, I highly recommend Cherie Priest’s Boneshaker, I mean, how can you go wrong with zombies, gas-masks and air-pirates?

Weeks Too Late: Sherlock Holmes

Sherlock Holmes. Directed by Guy Ritchie.

Written by Michael Robert Johnson, Anthony Peckham and Simon Kinberg. Based on Lionel Wigram's story and Arthur Conan Doyle's characters (having that many writers is a good sign, right?)

Preconceptions (oh the ideas I've come up with before ever seeing the movie): From the first trailer I saw months and months ago this movie began to build itself up in my head to Wolfman-ian proportions. It looked like an enjoyable action movie set in one of my favourite time periods. It even appeared to have a delicious Steam Punk sensibility. However, it also looked to have nothing to do with Sherlock Holmes. I'm hardly a raving Doyle fan and haven't read enough Sherlock Holmes to be any kind of authority. Trailers featuring Watson (Jude Law) being a Kung-Fu master led me to think of the upcoming movie as Robert Downey Jr.'s Victorian Adventure: Featuring Fisticuffs (RDJVAFF, for short) so as not to be disappointed by a total lack of Sherlock Holmes.

General Review (I solemnly swear not to give away plot points): Once again, movies have lied to me through trailer. I hate it when they do that. I was bamboozled by the marketing. Far from being Sherlock Holmes lite, featuring no detectoring and half the calorie laden cocaine, the movie actually had something to do with the title character. Holmes was the same socially awkward genius I remembered from my failed attempts to enjoy the books when I was younger (seeing this movie has rekindled my interest in the series. Maybe I'll prefer it now that I've spent some time sophisticating my palate. By which I mean, I've read some truly dull novels from this time. I'm looking at YOU Dracula).

The relationship between Holmes and Watson is genuinely charming. The chemistry between Jude Law and Robert Downey Jr. was adorable and barely had any traces of homoeroticism (a difficult thing to do in a story about two men, one a confirmed bachelor, running around having adventures). It was a rare pleasure to see masculine camaraderie done so well.

But don't let me sell the action part of the adventure short. Sherlock Holmes wasn't just about two Victorian Gentlemen being friends. It was far from being the wire fighting extravaganza I was expecting. Most of the sequences were more along the lines of awkward running around and face punching.

It's quick paced and engaging. The hard core Sherlock Holmes Novel fans might be a bit disappointed, but probably not by much. It wasn't the smartest or funniest movie of the year and I don't think there should be any pressing need to run out to the theater and devour it. I do think that it's worth your time to see.

Random Thoughts (there may very well be spoilers) : Robert Downey Jr. should have become less attractive as he became more weathered and craggy. This is not the case. And while there was some lively fan girl debate on whether he or Jude Law was the more attractive team member, everyone could agree that it would be a tasty sandwich.

Being one of nature's anti-romantics I had basically no interest in Holmes' love connection. This aside, it was extraordinarily refreshing to see a movie where there was romantic tension that didn't lead to a sex scene. I can't remember the last time an antagonistic love interest didn't end up with the characters rolling around on the floor together. Congratulations, Movie!

DDR knock off games are a fun way to be ridiculed by your friends before the movie.

Girl on Book Action: Vlad: The Last Confession by C.C. Humphreys

Vlad: The Last Confession by C.C. Humphreys
ISBN: 978-1-4091-0372-1

From the back cover:

Dracula. A name of horror, depravity and the darkest sensuality.

Yet the real Dracula was just as alluring, just as terrifying, his story not of a monster but of a man...and a contradiction. For the one they called "The Devil's Son" was both tyrant and lawgiver, crusader and mass slaughterer, torturer and hero, lover and murderer.


***
My thoughts:

Let me start by saying that I picked this up on a whim at the bookstore one day, because I felt like reading some historical fiction and this didn't seem like it would be as romance oriented as some of the others that I've read / heard about. Also, being a vampirologist by trade reading a book about Vlad the Impaler is almost research, even if it is a fictional story.

The story is at once intricate and surprising, but also predictable and generic - a contradiction in itself. Humphreys creates a fascinating, detailed world and it is clear that some research went into not only what is known about Vlad, but also about the time period and settings. I found that the characters were well-represented and their fates kept my interest, though the dialogue felt a little heavy-handed and took some getting used to at the beginning. The story kept me intrigued and I could barely put this book down, despite its flaws.

The things that bothered me were the generic elements, such as the love triangle, which felt fairly trite to me - and just made me think of King Arthur / Guinevere and Lancelot, but more brutal in some ways. The last section started to drag a little for me, and while the plot-twist toward the end was good, I'm not sure it justified dragging the novel out by another 80 pages after what I felt should have been the climax and subsequent end. I started to feel like the characters just didn't learn and I wanted hit them with an "I told you so!" stick. The actual end of the book was fairly gratifying, it was just finally getting there that was a bit frustrating.

One of the things that has sort of stuck with me is that in the afterword, Humphreys writes that he didn't want to humanize Vlad too much, because he committed these terrible things. If he was trying not to humanize him, I think he failed because I found this fictional Vlad Dracula to be pretty enigmatic and intriguing, but maybe I just like those kinds of men (Vampire Stalin, anyone?). And as much as I thought the love-story was a little generic, I did find it to be compelling.

Overall, I would say that if you're looking for a fairly quick read with some romance and battles, as well as a few plot twists and you know, people being impaled you should read this book, just don't expect it to be the best thing you've ever read. It's entertaining, but not necessarily profound literature.

Addendum: The picture is a woodcut of atrocities allegedly committed by Vlad Dracul. If you decide to read this novel, you will find that these propaganda productions are also addressed in the text.

Weeks Too Late: Avatar

Avatar. Director & Writer: James Cameron.

Preconceptions (where I will tell you about the candy castles I've built in my brain about the movie before seeing it): Well, it's no secret that going into this movie I expected a very nearly overblown epic about Space Elves vs...erm...Space Mechs (if there are no Space Orcs to be found my sympathies tend to go with the Mechs, so Go Mechs!) I had to be bodily forced to see it in 3D (I believe my shoulder has been dislocated) because I was certain it would be a cheap gimmick that would leave me headachey and irritable. James Cameron's movies have been about 50/50 with me in the past. Even the ones that weren't my cup of tea still tended to be visually interesting.

General Review (where I will not spoil the meat in your fridge): Well shut my mouth: 3D isn't the least bit stupid after all. Even if you hate every minute of the Fern Gully plotting, Nature Loving, deus ex machina filled plot I think it's worth the price of admission just to see what 3D is capable of. Far from being a cheap trick to pull in grandmothers and idiot children it enhanced the whole experience. Seeing alien landscapes dance on the tip of my substantial nose was captivating. But more than just being pretty, the 3D added depth to normal scenes of guys sitting around.

Avatar was not the Ride of the Valkyries style action movie I was expecting. Oh certainly, there was action to be had, but the smell of napalm wasn't nearly as pungent as anticipated. I'm reluctant to complain about lack of action in a movie, but in this case if it hadn't been for the interest generated by the 3D experience I would have tired of prancing around in the woodland much sooner than I did.

Unfortunately, the phrase "if not for the 3D" came up regularly during the movie. The pacing would have been too slow (if I wasn't being awed by the light show of the 3D); the plot would have been pedantic and snore worthy (if I wasn't giggling and clapping at alien kitties rolling around); and the overall nature worshiping motif would have irritated me to no end (if I wasn't gasping at the neat perspective tricks).

The alien, plant and planet design were neat, there is no denying it. I wish some of the same attention to detail had been put into writing the characters. Our main character Jake has several changes of heart that are expected in this type of story but not given any build up in the story. Whether it was the writing or being an animated Space Elf for much of the movie the usually delightful Sigourney Weaver could have been any middle aged actress.

At the end of the day, I enjoyed myself at Avatar, but probably wouldn't have liked it as much if I'd seen it as a 2D DVD. I'd recommend going to see it but only if you can while it's still in theaters.

Random Thoughts (where I leave whatever else has dribbled out of my ears): More than once I found myself wanting to ask Trudy, Michelle Rodriguez' character if anyone had mistaken her for a man.

What would a Mech want with a knife?

Unobtainium? That's what you're going to call your precious, difficult to acquire ore? I've been told it's a supplier's joke...but really?

Floating mountains are the point which one of my movie companion's suspension of disbelief snapped. Not alien lifeforms or giant robots, but floating mountains.

I think everyone looks cool in 3D glasses:


Aside (where I will tell you things unrelated to the review): And now I begin my six month journey to see if I can provide regular content regarding movies you've probably already seen. I promise neither the keen insight of my co-writer the Lady Doomwench of Girl on Book Action nor up to the minute reviews, tweeted to you while I watch the movie. However, I do get around as far as flicks go and am bursting to share my thoughts with you.