Review and should you preorder - Mister Max: The Book of Lost Things

The book: Mister Max: The Book of Lost Things
Grade: A-
Why i Picked it up: A fellow Goodreads member mentioned that the NetGalley catalog had an excerpt of a different book that I am eagerly anticipating. The first story featured in the catalog was Ms. Voigt's captivating excerpt of Mister Max.

Why i Finished it:
Each chapter's title's in the eGalley looked interesting and I began to wonder how Max, a 12-year old who has misplaced his parents, would live independently with only his 'Grammie' (grandma) supporting. Soon enough, he is rewarded for locating a missing kid and that begins a career in detecting and not-so-incidentally in fixing his client's lives.
There is also an underlying mystery - where are his parents? Does his father's farewell letter have a second hidden message? When will he be reunited? And when he is, will that be a good thing?

Blurb:

Newbery medalist Cynthia Voigt is back with a rollicking mystery in three acts!

     Max's parents are missing. They are actors, and thus unpredictable, but sailing away, leaving Max with only a cryptic note, is unusual even for them. Did they intend to leave him behind? Have they been kidnapped? 

     Until he can figure it out, Max feels it's safer to keep a low profile. Hiding out is no problem for a child of the theater. Max has played many roles, he can be whoever he needs to be to blend in. But finding a job is tricky, no matter what costume he dons.

     Ironically, it turns out Max has a talent for finding things. He finds a runaway child, a stray dog, a missing heirloom, a lost love. . . . So is he a finder? A detective? No, it's more. Max finds a way to solve people's problems--he engineers better outcomes for them. He becomes Mister Max, Solutioneer.

     Now if only he could find a solution to his own problems . . .

Quote:

"So. They had sailed without him. His heart hit bottom. He had well and truly missed the boat. But what boat headed for what destination? And why had he been lied to about the time?"

Source: NetGalley
If you want a second opinion, here is another reviewer's thoughts
Finally, to help you decide, you can find the excerpt in the Buzz Books 2013: Fall/Winter collection published by NetGalley.

Review: Artemis Fowl - The Lost Colony and The Time Paradox

Grade B+ Review of Artemis Fowl Books 5 & 6
Published by Disney-Hyperion


Why I read them: The 8th and final Artemis Fowl book is coming out July 2012, this seemed a good time to catch up!
 
The Lost Colony refers to a colony of Demons that have been out of sync with our universe for a thousand years. Artemis is on a race against time to prevent the humans from discovering their existence and hence exterminating them.
Quote from The Lost Colony:

"Sool was the king of red tape. As the dwarfs said, he couldn't make a decision if he was holding a jug of water and his bum-flap was on fire. "  

Plus: Artemis meets his nemesis, the young genius Minerva.  Plenty of witty comments and shenanigans occur - very fast paced. The God-names are obvious references to their intellect,
Minus: Her role wasn't wasn't as pivotal as I expected. Seemed like Minerva's story line ran out of steam about halfway through and it all became about Artemis per usual . The book overall wasn't memorable, but ended on a cliffhanger. Recommend that you borrow this novel AND have the next one ready to read!

Review: Freaks of the Heartland by Steve Niles

Grade A review of Freaks of the heartland by Steve Niles & Greg Ruth
Publication Date: July 11, 2012 (of the hardcover edition that collects all 5 stories. You can still elect to buy each part separately if you want to read right away)

Blurb from Goodreads: Under the weathered skies of America's heartland, and in the wounded hearts of every family in one tiny rural town, a terrible secret has been kept for too many years. Now, a young boy named Trevor must try to keep his younger brother Will from falling victim to the worst fears of a troubled town that can't begin to understand the tragic secret that binds its families together.

Pros: Exceptionally moving - Greg Ruth's images are so clear, each brush stroke stands out. These dark stories are best illustrated by the stark lines of each panel. A pervading sense of horror keeps you turning the pages, waiting to see what happens next!

I had to go back and read again from cover to cover the next day once the story sank in. The looming house in a grassy plain, the lone kid dreading his home - each picture just pulls you in.

Cons: None that I could find! If I had to nitpick, I'd say that categorizing this as horror might mislead some of us - this is a genre-transcending story.


I'd recommend this to: Especially for those who think horror is gory.


You can preview it here and buy it on amazon here.
Thanks to Darkhorse comics & NetGalley for the review copy

BRIEFLY ABOUT STEVE, the author:
"I'm a writer. I write comics, novels and films. I like reading, writing and watching Horror
I'm credited among other contemporary writers as bringing horror comics back to prominence, authoring such works as 30 Days of Night, its sequel, Dark Days, and Criminal Macabre." 

What official websites think:

http://www.readaboutcomics.com/2004/02/11/freaks-of-the-heartland-1/
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/871081.Freaks_of_the_Heartland

Review: Mike Norton's Battlepug

Grade: B (3 Stars) for Mike's graphic novel, releasing July 17th, 2012

The epic tale of blood and drool begins here! Join Molly and her dogs Mingo and Colfax, as she recounts the legend of "The Warrior and the Battlepug" - a tale of a fearless barbarian, his trusty and freakishly large pug, and evil baby harp seals. This volume collects the first year of Mike Norton's Battlepug - the perfect opportunity to get in on the ground floor of the fan-favorite webcomic by Mike Norton, Allen Passalaqua, and Crank

The Story is told to two dogs, Colfax and Mingo, by their owner Molly.


Plus:

Love the interaction between the dogs - super snarky and just like two siblings quarreling.
Also - Happy Killer Baby Seals (tm) are so funny!
What fantastic colours! Highlights are the humour, and terrific artwork. The conan-the-barbarian body and fighting style of our hero on the pug is great to look at!

Minus:
The fable our narrator tells is an over-used plotline. The gathering of a band, the omens and prophecy, were a little too obvious. Perhaps the artwork and design took precedence over plot and storyline? Why did Molly have to narrate while naked? No explanation, aside from the obvious appeal to a male reader.

Overall/Recommended to:
This is MUST read for all pug-owners, naturally. I'm not myself going to read the rest of the comic (available at the website below) right now, the storyline didn't leave me wanting more.
Thanks to NetGalley and Dark Horse comics for the copy to review.


Where to find Battlepug:

On Goodreads
Mike's online ongoing Battlepug comic

Review: Ember by Kristen Callihan (Firelight #0.5)

Ember, a NetGalley provided novella gets a Grade A review: 

Blurb: "After a fire consumes the Ellis family fortune, the beautiful and resourceful Miranda finds herself faced with an impossible dilemma: enter a life of petty crime or watch her family succumb to poverty. But once her fiancée learns of her descent into danger--and of the strange, new powers she's discovered --saving her family may come at the high price of her heart.

When Lord Benjamin Archer's one chance for redemption is destroyed by corrupt London antiquarian Hector Ellis, he vows to take what Ellis values most-his daughter Miranda. Forced to hide his face behind masks, Archer travels the world hoping to escape the curse that plagues him so that he can finally claim his prize.

But once Archer returns home to London, will it be revenge he seeks? Or will the flame-haired beauty ignite new, undeniable desires?"

Ember is an 8 chapter short prequel to a new series, and has completely caught my imagination. The prequel is set in 1800s London, with rich language and absorbing characters. The story covers two POVs - Miranda (the fire-starter) and Archer (mysterious dark man) - and is the backstory for both characters who the key players in Kristen's Firelight series. I haven't read the series yet, but I'm so going to!
Good: The writing is powerful, and took me straight into Miranda's life. She is forced by her gambler/wastrel father to steal, and in the process Burns an attacker. The author's language uses street London argot, feels authentic!

Bad: Its hard to tell from a short novella like this, but my initial read of the prequel and the first few chapters in Firelight was pretty positive.
Should You read it? 
Yes, and I'd even suggest going straight into the main series Firelight - if the writing is anything as good as the prequel, its a must-read for paranormal & historical romance fans!
 
The novella also comes with decent sized previews of Firelight and Moonglow - the first books in two new series.
Note: This novella was provided for review by NetGalley

Review: Touch of Power by Maria Snyder

In this new yet-to-release series by Maria Snyder, of Poison Studies fame, we explore a world that has turned against healers. I've enjoyed all her other books so far - they have strong, principled heroines, who end up key to the battle between good vs. evil.
Publication Date: 27th December, 2011

The Story:  A terrible plague has wiped out large swathes of peoples across the country, and the kingdom has dissolved into several weakened states. Each healer who tried healing a plague carrier died in turn of the plague. With only 100 healers or so in the guild, the Healers Guild proclaimed that they would not heal the plague carriers, and instead tried to find the cure. However, this proclamation resulted in massive anti-healer sentiment, and began a wide scale persecution of the healers. Now only one healer remains - Avry.

Avry has been on the run, but now must choose sides in the war for the weakened states. The power plays between the various contending factions mean that a healer is a valuable piece on the board, and Avry's choice plays a key factor in which faction might eventually triumph.

Plus:Avry and other characters are really interesting to read, and their motivations unveil gradually as the plot develops. I'm keen to read more about them, if there are other books planned. She keeps her secrets to herself, which is a nice refreshing change from heroines that blurt them out to the first hero that comes along!

Minus:  I'm seeing a lot of fantasy that has pages and pages dedicated to travel, travel rations and the countryside - it seems to be a staple of the genre, but I'd like to see something creative here!

Overall: A solid, engrossing tale.

You can read an earlier review of Maria Snyder's Storm Glass here

Thanks to Harlequin and NetGalley for providing the review copy.

Where do you go for reading suggestions and inspiration?

Just as writers are familiar with writer's block, all readers go through dry periods of no reading  - does this sound familiar to you?

When your favorite author's books are all read, when a long fantasy series is completed, when your library just seems to far away to go to, or when you don't have that ONE great book to read, what do you do?
Do you put away reading for a while and turn to something else; focus on work or a hobby for that evening or week, maybe?

I end up randomly browsing news sites, or Amazon, looking for new authors or books. Still, I've recently found NetGalley to be a fount of inspiration! Just that thrill of reading books prior to their release is enough to get me started up again.
Another good source of recommendations and ideas are the lists at GoodReads, usually if you pick a genre, you are bound to get author suggestions. LibraryThing also works for a lot of people. And of course, the tried and true method of asking a friend IRL!
Where do YOU go for that reading itch?

Review: The Deadliest Bite by Jennifer Rardin

Why I picked it up:
I picked up the first Jaz Parks Urban Fantasy/Vampire book a while ago, and read a couple of books before I got a little bored.
Having noticed that the final book in the series (Book 8) was out, and on NetGalley, I decided to complete the series and then review it in toto.

Series Summary:
Jaz and Vayl are secret agents in the US Govt, assassinating who they are told to. Jaz is a spunky female assistant assassin (tongue twister!), while Vayl is the vampire, eternally hunting for his long-lost sons.
Over the first couple of books, they make friends with a Seer, a genius inventor, and an angel, amongst others. Jaz grows more powerful over the books, and new elements about the world they are in come to light - a battle between good and evil, the zone where Ghosts reside, and fake "Sensitives". We see some military action, as both Jaz and Vayl work for the CIA, while fighting their growing attraction for each other.

What I liked about The Deadliest Bite:
This is a definite "last book". Lots of ends are tied up and I saw a huge improvement in the writing flavor from the first. I thought this might be a trite vampire love story, but the characters are really strong and fiercely written and saves the book from falling into a stereotype.

Minus:
So many incidents/scenes in a book make it a little hard to remember what happened in the previous books, and so I'm left with a vague recollection of the earlier novels. Some of the technology (like Jaz's mechanical, smart, transforming cat) is too far-fetched for me to swallow, even in if it is military funded.

Aside: Very sad to note that the author passed away so early in her life.
This series is a SOLID B+, and Great when read separately with breaks between the novels.

I would recommend it to:
Ilona Andrews fans, Katie MacAllister readers, vampire novel readers :) *like, duh*