Last year in November through an activity called 'Nanohop' during National Novel Writing Month, I became acquainted with Catherine LaCroix, a romance author who has agreed (muahaha) to be a writing buddy.  Little does she know what she's getting into (homophone hell).  Her stories are available on Amazon.  Fellow Australians who want to read it have to go through amazon.com.au.  I found this out the hard way so that you don't have to.

I really don’t want to preface this review with ‘I don’t read romance’, but it’s true and it must be said because I’m going to talk a bit more about the plot and characters than the steamy, steamy scenes in between.  As my partner put it perfectly, “it sounds like you’re more interested in whether or not he’s going to actually fix her pipes.” 
That’s not to say that Catherine LaCroix doesn’t do a wonderful job at tackling a subject that could easily become tedious.  There’s only so many descriptions you can use for the same few body parts without making it seem weird, right?  Catherine somehow manages, despite the book being about 50/50 sex.

So now onto the story. 

Resonance by Catherine LaCroix is a collection of stories about Josselyn Thorn, a Whisper who is framed for the murder of the two people she loved the most.  In LaCroix’s world, Whispers are both coveted and reviled for their sexual sense and Josselyn is more often seen as ‘what’ she is rather than ‘who’ she is.  When Josselyn is rescued by a man who she knows little about, yet is deeply tied to the two she loved, she finds herself with the dangerous opportunity of uncovering the truth behind their murder. 

Readers of Resonance will find themselves transported into a fantasy world that vaguely resembles the Victorian era, where society was still firmly held by peerage, yet with the emergence of industry that afforded freedom and wealth to a skilled middle class.  Josselyn’s story gives the reader a glimpse into the wider socio-political set up of the world, touching on relevant issues associated with slavery, religion, corruption, and marginalisation of certain peoples.  With relatively few words, LaCroix manages to paint the broad strokes of a world that readers will find charming and familiar.    

For readers like me who are rubbed the wrong way by passive submission or lack of agency in a character, I’d urge you to keep reading, because Josselyn is both more complex and simple than she originally seems.  I was won over by the deep kindness that starts to show once the grime of her prison cell starts to wash away (both outside and in). 

Overall, I would recommend Resonance to people who like their steamy stories to make sense, who like characters for who they are, not what they do, and who, like me, are genuinely concerned about whether the pipes actually get fixed.   

Solemn Coyote has done it again.  He keeps recommending the best books.  It’s only a matter of time before he publishes one too, so watch that space. 

I’ve just finished reading Fated by Benedict Jacka, the first book of the Alex Verus series.  It’s one of those extremely satisfying urban fantasy novels where a decent guy tries to survive a world full of magical assholes.  It hits all the right notes in terms of pacing, characters, and action.   Best of all, it’s not unkind.

I’ve noticed a trend in movies, particularly action movies.  There’s often this one scene that is entirely unique.  Flying a tank.  Dragging a money vault through the streets.  If Fated was an action movie (which it totally could be), Benedict’s take on divination is that scene.  It’s not overpowered, it hasn’t been nerfed, it’s simply delightful.    
There’s seven more of these buggers to go in the Verus series.  I need to get my hands on the next one, or, as I told Solemn, ‘NEED MOAR’.

It has been a while since I have read a book from start to finish, carrying it with me everywhere and reading even as I eat and do chores one handedily around the house.  But now I look up to see that it is Sunday night and I have spent an entire week doing just that. 

Naomi Novik’s Temeraire series is an adventure that reaches in and grabs something inside of you.  I have just finished Empire of Ivory after begging my partner to buy it and courier it up to Hervey Bay especially so I would have something to do while I coughed up my lungs. 

I am always a little bit worried when I start a new series.  When will I get sick of the characters making stupid mistakes?  When will the adventures become monotonous?  When will it get so drama-y that I throw the book down in disgust? When will they kill off everyone awesome?

Hmmmm.  I will read it if you promise me that it’s not traumatic.  I wrote to Solemn when he suggested the books.

It’s pretty good.  Scout’s honor.  He wrote back.

Scout’s honour indeed.

The Temeraire series follows the adventures of Temeraire, a rare and wilful dragon, and his captain, Laurence, during the course of an alternate Nepoleonic Wars where dragons exist.  As awesome as that sounds, I don’t think the description even comes close to doing it justice.  The story telling is distinct, the world realized well, and full of characters that you can cheer aloud for.  I am only up to the fourth book, so halfway through the series, and though Novik throws her characters into ever increasingly precarious situations, it has not ended yet in tragedy (knock on wood)!  Though Laurence is by no means a shabby character (impossible not to admire his unbending morals, though from the first book he is forced to grow past the limitations these pose), it is the dragons that really bring the laughter and heart to the stories. 

I heard that the last book in the series is coming out soon.  Hopefully by the time it comes out, I will have finished reading all the others and I can do a longer review then. 

But I just wanted to say how excited and happy I am to have been set upon this series by a good friend.

It took me a while to get around to reading The Great Zoo of China by Matthew Reilly, and boy am I glad I did.  What’s the book like?  Think Jurassic Park (the raptors).  Godzilla (1998 movie).  And... strangely, think How to Train Your Dragon. 

My thoughts:

Liberal use of profanity has returned!!!! Yesssssss. 

Matthew Reilly spends about the first 1/5 of the book setting up the premise.  It makes ‘WTF, a dragon zoo in China?!?’ into ‘Cool.  A dragon zoo in China’.  Signature diagrams and info dumps abound.  The seamless meld of research and storytelling is admirable – it’s what Matthew does best.

For someone who is used to Matthew’s characters being cardboard cannon fodder, it was odd (a good kind of odd) to see him more invested in building personalities for his characters.  Action (with cannon-fodder characters) was still the main focus of the story, but there were more memorable characters. 

The book presented some commentary on the methods of China which I think may alienate some of its readers, but it’s not so different from Matthew’s portrayal of the French in Scarecrow books or the Americans in the Jack West books.  The emphasis on cultural leadership was interesting.

The use of a female protagonist was also interesting.  It was quite different from other books I’ve read.  No one judged/second guessed/argued against the orders that she issues.  The emphasis was on physical capabilities and problem solving.  Not your typical female lead.  Apart from bonding with a particular dragon, I’m not sure if CJ’s gender even mattered. 

Did I hear someone mention dragons?  Matthew’s take on this beast is superb.  He’s really playing to his strengths here:  melding the research with the story, and creating devastating beasts.  Throughout the book, I wasn’t sure if I was rooting for the dragons or the people.

Overall, I really liked the book.  I read it in 2 days.  Full discloser: I am a huge fan of Matthew Reilly.  I have all his books, and all but 2 are signed.