Review: Tankborn by Karen Sandler

Title: Tankborn

Author: Karen Sandler

Genre: dystopia, science fiction, young-adult

Series: N/A

Pages: 384 (Nook NetGalley ARC edition)

Published: September 2011
Source: publishers via NetGalley

Rating: 4/5

Best friends Kayla and Mishalla know they will be separated when the time comes for their Assignments. They are GENs, Genetically Engineered Non-humans, and in their strict caste system, GENs are at the bottom rung of society. High-status trueborns and working-class lowborns, born naturally of a mother, are free to choose their own lives. But GENs are gestated in a tank, sequestered in slums, and sent to work as slaves as soon as they reach age fifteen.

When Kayla is Assigned to care for Zul Manel, the patriarch of a trueborn family, she finds a host of secrets and surprises—not least of which is her unexpected friendship with Zul's great-grandson. Meanwhile, the children that Mishalla is Assigned to care for are being stolen in the middle of the night. With the help of an intriguing lowborn boy, Mishalla begins to suspect that something horrible is happening to them.

After weeks of toiling in their Assignments, mystifying circumstances enable Kayla and Mishalla to reunite. Together they hatch a plan with their new friends to save the children who are disappearing. Yet can GENs really trust humans? Both girls must put their lives and hearts at risk to crack open a sinister conspiracy, one that may reveal secrets no one is ready to face.

Tankborn surprised me. What I initially assumed was simply a run-of-the-mill, churn-'em-out-quick young-adult dystopia, Tankborn emerges as a strong novel with compelling adult-ish themes about defining what humanity and beauty mean to every individual. Clocking in at a nice length of almost 400 pages, Karen Sandler creates a distinctive, dark and utterly readable world with her science fiction gem. I would put her indie-published Tankborn up there with The Hunger Games and The Demi-Monde as the best young-adult dystopias I have had the pleasure to read in 2011. Simply and best put: Tankborn is an all-inclusive novel that is not one to miss for any reader that appreciates well-rounded plot, outstanding and three-dimensional characters within an alien but totally interesting location.

The beginning of the novel does suffer a bit from a rushed introduction to a large variety of terms, places, people, scientific ideas. The book very quickly dispenses with needed information and details, and Tankborn is quickly a rewarding and interesting read. This is a standalone novel that doesn't stint on imagination: from vocabulary to flora and fauna, Karen Sandler left no stone unturned in creating her highly-realized and almost tangible Loka (I also wondered if the name "Loka" was a statement that the way of life on the planet was well . . loca. Sorry, I make bad jokes.) With both ominous and interesting-sounding names like sewer-toads, droms, seycats and (eeugh!!) giant spiders known as bhimkay, Loka is a wild tangle of creative, and very original plots and threads that mesh very well together. Over and over, I both felt that this was a book that was crafted so believably and so intricately as well as being very impressed by the effort of the author. It felt probable in a way I had had not anticipated for a youg-adult science fiction novel about gene-spicing and engineered people. It helps that the "science" of the novel is basic and minimal, without missing out on specificity or indulging in ridiculousness.

Kayla, the main character and my personal favorite of the varied lot, is a 14th-year GEN - otherwise known to everyone on the planet of Loka as a Genetically Engineered Non-human. In the 400 years since humans left earth, "gene-splicers" have mixed animal and human DNA, ascribing certain skill sets to each individual GEN. Within her very intricate, detailed and striated society because if this DNA and her tank-origin, Kayla represents the lowest of the low on the entire planet of Loka. Marked with identifying facial tattoos, Kayla's caste is reminiscent of both the "untouchables" of real-world India's infamous social pyramid mixed with the downtrodden Jewish population of  Nazi Germany. I really liked Kayla through the course of her struggles; this is a girl considered less than human, but one that genuinely empathizes and sympathizes with a trueborn even on her worst day. I do wish the novel had shown her with her tanksister and fellow main character Mishalla, but Kayla does not disappoint on her own. It's also refreshing to once again read a character of color, without her skin tone becoming her defining characteristic.

I can't say too much about Kayla's tanksister Mishalla. One of the few issues I had with this delightful read were with this particular character. She lacked initiative and in such a situation as she was in - it just drove me crazy for her to just sit and worry for 250 pages. I also felt her romance with the rarely-seen Eoghan was completely unrealistic. The reader sees them together maybe three times before the ending, and I never bought into their "love". Also - spoiler warning, fairly large, so stop reading this here! - her and her husband adopting the lost children? Also just: Mishalla getting married at about 15!?!?! - so obviously too much about this character didn't work for me. END SPOILERS. Now, lets talk about Kayla's love interest Devak. I liked him infinitely more than Eoghan and Mishalla, and thought his rounded personality of hedged kindness, curiousity and sheer arrogance presented a very real face/name for the readers to root for redemption. He's a bit naive, as is Kayla, in that these two believe so much of what they are told and do not question authority at all. I did like Kayla's and Devak's approach to their "relationship": it was mature, it was giving and especially at the end, it was surprising.

Echoing the earlier Nazi-vibes with the facial tattoos/identification of Kayla and the rest of the GENs, is the party saying, "Work Will Make You Safe" for the lowest of their rigid and regimented society (Nazi's used the infamous "Arbeit macht frei" meaning "works makes us free" above the concentration camp of Aushwitz.)  This omnipresent saying is both a reminder of the GENs own mythology of work ensuring happiness and reward after death from their deity The Infinite and also serves as a subtle threat from the government. The message is simple: the GENs existence is only suffered as a work force. If a GEN doesn't work, it is useless and will be "reset", or "realigned" out of existence. I love the multiple facets of real-world hatred and oppresion were worked into the framework of the soceity within Tankborn. From the allusions to Nazism and the "untouchable" aspect akin to India mentioned earlier, I also felt an echo of the United States slavery and continuing racial issues into the 1960's. Like blacks and whites of Earth before the Civil Rights Act, the GENs of Loka cannot share a water fountain, a seat with a trueborn: immediate action and punishment would follow were they to even try. Human suffering and oppresion are universal, sadly, and Ms. Sandler's sad, but entirely apt homage to that fact only reinforces the solidity of her science fiction creation.

(Warning: Slight spoilers ahead) All that praise written above is not to say I did not have a few quibbles with Tankborn. I sometimes felt that Kayla's neverending search for understanding and answers seemed a tad drawn out... especially when the man with literally ALL THE ANSWERS has both had illicit and seditious coversations with the main character as well as living less than 100 feet away. If a little time had been trimmed off her to-and-fro'ing, it would've been a more seamless (and sensical) read. I also wondered just why the gene-splicers are having issues creating new GENs - if they've had no issues the first 50 years of the experiments, why all of the sudden there is an issue? Still, these are two very minor issues waving in the face of much more win and awesome, so I didn't fixate on the irritations.

With an open ending that manages to both fulfill open-ended questions and leave a possibility for more in this complex world, Tankborn is a win. I will be on the constant lookout for more books from this author, set in this world/series or not. Karen Sandler is most impressive with her science fiction, young-adult dystopia set in a world far far away. It's a relevant and insightful look into racism, young love and burgeoning independence. 

Book Tour Review: Love May Fail by Matthew Quick

Title: Love May Fail
Author: Matthew Quick
Genre: general fiction
Series: N/A
Pages: 416
Published: June 2015
Source: TLC Book Tours for review
Rating: 2/5

Portia Kane is having a meltdown. After escaping her ritzy Florida life and her cheating pornographer husband, she finds herself back in South Jersey, a place that remains largely unchanged from the years of her unhappy youth. Lost and alone, looking for the goodness she believes still exists in the world, Portia sets off on a quest to save the one man who always believed in her—and in all of his students: her beloved high school English teacher, Mr. Vernon, who has retired broken and alone after a traumatic classroom incident.

Will a sassy nun, an ex-heroin addict, a metalhead little boy, and her hoarder mother help or hurt Portia’s chances on this quest to resurrect a good man and find renewed hope in the human race? Love May Fail is a story of the great highs and lows of existence: the heartache and daring choices it takes to become the person you know (deep down) you are meant to be. 

So having read The Good Luck of Right Now and enjoyed despite what could be the overly quirky nature of the narrative, I thought I was ready for Matthew Quick's latest adult novel. I was wrong. Love May Fail is like TGLoRN in that in pulls a disparate group of characters together to act out an outlandish plot while supporting the book's central themes.  But it's unlike TGLoRN in that it lacks the charming characters or writing to support the story and engage the audience. I wanted to love Love May Fail but in the end, I didn't end up feeling much about it besides annoyed and disappointed.

It's hard to engage in a novel when my character options are as follows: spoiled, privileged white lady, dead nun, morose ex-teacher with a fascination for Albert Camus (the writer) and Albert Camus (his deceased dog named after, oh I'm sorry, who was actually the reincarnation of Albert Camus-the-writer), and a genial but boring guy named Chuck who has loved the same girl -- despite not seeing her for years at a time -- for 20 years. This book is weird and it's not the kind of weird I could dig, personally. Portia never rises above her inherent privilege and is a mess for the whole book. Chuck is the least interesting POV of the bunch and it's because "nice" was the only characteristic given to him in over 400 pages.

And the length -- those 416 pages? They feel self-indulgent given how little plot exists in Love May Fail. This book is too long and too unfocused. Or perhaps just focused on the wrong aspects because it is also frequently tedious. People drink. Fight. Complain. Drama. More of the same. There are moments when I was caught up in the story -- that's how you know it's Matthew Quick. You fully realize the absurdity of what you're reading but you just don't care because it's so damn readable -- but they aren't as common as you would expect from the author of The Silver Linings Playbook. The humor is there, occasionally, but there's none of the poignancy from Quick's other books to be found.

There are kernels of a good story here, and I could see why, perhaps for a different kind of reader, this is already a good story. For me, it was just average and fairly unmemorable. It certainly wasn't to the standards I've come to expect from the author and the unlikely coincidences coupled with the overwrought characters made this one a hard sell. Love May Fail is unflinching and dark but with the lack of a substantial plot, but it wasn't enough to merit more than 2 stars.

Review: The Heart of Betrayal by Mary E. Pearson

Title: The Heart of Betrayal
Author: Mary E. Pearson
Genre: fantasy, post-apocalyptic, young adult
Series: The Remnant Chronicles #2
Pages: 470
Published: July 7 2015
Source: publishers for review
Rating: 4.5/5

Intrigue abounds in this hotly anticipated sequel to The Kiss of Deception!

Held captive in the barbarian kingdom of Venda, Lia and Rafe have little chance of escape. Desperate to save her life, Lia's erstwhile assassin, Kaden, has told the Vendan Komizar that she has the gift, and the Komizar's interest in Lia is greater than anyone could have foreseen.

Meanwhile, nothing is straightforward: there's Rafe, who lied to Lia, but has sacrificed his freedom to protect her; Kaden, who meant to assassinate her but has now saved her life; and the Vendans, whom Lia always believed to be barbarians. Now that she lives amongst them, however, she realizes that may be far from the truth. Wrestling with her upbringing, her gift, and her sense of self, Lia must make powerful choices that will affect her country... and her own destiny.

If there's an antidote for Second Book/Sequel Syndrome, Mary E. Pearson has it.  Last year the first book in this post-apocalyptic/fantasy hybrid series was a fun and engaging, if flawed, introduction to the world of Lia and Terravin, but Heart of Betrayal, with the Komizar in Venda, is to Kiss of Deception what Crown of Midnight was to Throne of Glass. In every way, this sequel improves upon its predecessor. It's just as fun but has more depth; there's action, but it's balanced by a more political plot; the familiar characters are further developed and the new ones are just as well rendered. Pearson's story and filled out has grown to fit the imagination shown in the first.

The Heart of Betrayal is much less concerned with the romance this time around... and somehow, that makes the romance-as-a-subplot work a lot better. It helps that the cleverly constructed but still irritating love triangle is resolved (sorry Liaden shippers) but that doesn't mean that it's happily ever after for Rafe and Lia, especially once the Komizar comes into play.

So often YA novels focus on just the importance of starting a relationship between main characters but not dealing with the... shenanigans the preceded it, or the work that goes into maintaining it. That is not so here -- both Lia and Rafe have to come to terms with questions about their relationship and each other. They've both lied, deceived, and manipulated each other -- it's not a perfect pairing. It could be overwrought and overwhelm the real plot, but Pearson handles it pretty well. The forced-apart-for-reasons trope is rarely well-employed but Pearson sells it here by making those "reasons" authentic to the plot and the characters' situations.

Speaking of reasons keeping the love interests apart... let's talk about new characters and places. I loved seeing the new sides of the world with the introduction to Venda thanks to Lia's abduction. The author didn't go into as much worldbuilding detail as I would like to see (especially with the near-canon nod that yes, this was once America [CALLED IT!]) but did a decent job of presenting Venda as a completely different and organic culture. However, since we are two books in, there are some holes in the worldbuilding that need filling and fast, if this trilogy is going to wrap up satisfactorily. We do see more interaction between the countries but there is little else to go on, which bums my fantasy-loving heart. I am so interested in this world that Pearson has envisioned (almost akin to Erika Johansen did with The Queen of the Tearling series) but I need more solid information to really endorse it.

Character-wise, I can always appreciate a good antihero. Pearson walks the line with crafting  the Komizar -- I couldn't quuuuiiiiite get there even with my penchant for loving the antihero --- but she makes him a compelling and intriguing character despite his many faults. There are hints about his past that hopefully are explored further later in the books but he is the focus of the novel as much as Lia for all of his being a latecomer to the series. Lia reacts to him rather than the pattern we are used to from the first book (Lia making decisions and everyone else scrambling to keep up, compete, etc.) and he's a well-drawn antagonist. Calantha remains opaque and unpredictable but has potential for a larger role and more importance with her strategic position and her privileged knowledge.

Lia really comes into her own over the course of The Heart of Betrayal. She was always a likeable but naive character but here, with grief and maturity and determination tempering her, she's becoming quite a clever force to reckon with. Even as a prisoner, or a captive, Lia never gives up or stops playing the mental game.  Outnumbered and out of her depth, she fights back and plans her vengeance but she does so intelligently and with care. Lia is many things, but her intelligence and her empathy are two of my favorite aspects to her characterization. Rafe has less to work with (damn you third person) and less time as a narrator, but he also matures over the course of the book.

The Heart of Betrayal is darker book than I was expecting, given the first novel's plot and tone. It's not a typical fantasy, but Pearson isn't pulling punches. This second book is more serious, more thoughtful, and a damn good read.

 

Jessie's June Books

So I did really, really good at not buying books in June. It was weird. I mean I bought some -- I'm not a saint -- but it was way way down from what I usually bring in. See?

Bought:

A Crown for Cold Silver by Alex Marshall -- so this has had mixed reviews but I love the title, the tagline ("it was all going so well, right up until he massacre") and there's a bisexual female general. Sold.

The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly by Stephanie Oakes - I've already read this and it is goddamn fantastic. Cults + The Girl With No Hands + great writing.

To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han - I have this as an ARC but the time was right for a physical copy.

Sent:

What We Left Behind by Robin Talley --- thank you Harlequin Teen!
Mistletoe and Mr. Right by Lyla Payne --- thank you Bloomsbury!
A Thousand Nights by E.K. Johnston --- thank you Christina Reads YA!
First & Then by Emma Mills --- thank you MacMillan!
Avelynn by Marissa Campbell --- thank you St. Martin's Griffin!

Gifted:

ARC of Froi of the Exiles by Melina Marchetta --- thank you Lili for adding to my Marchetta collection <3
Illuminae by Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman --- HOLY SHIT GUYS READ THIS RIGHT NOW OK OK
Wonder by R.J. Palacio -- planned for a buddy read with the lovely Lili
These Shallow Graves by Jennifer Donnelly --- new book by one of my very favorite authors! YAAASSS.
Legacy of Kings by Eleanor Herman --- want want want have have have joy joy joy 
Court of Fives by Kate Elliott --- I have loved all her adult fantasy so this is beyond exciting. 

thank you thank you Lili, Bekka, and Paige! <3 

Lies We Tell Ourselves by Robin Talley
Talon by Julie Kagawa 

gifted by Lyn along with TWO awesome gifts -- a Tootless figurine and a dragon neckalce. I haven't taken the neckalce off and Tootless stands guard on my computer.

Thank you my lovely friend for your care package <3

Say Goodnight Gracie by Julie Reece Deaver--- So I made poor Lindsey read Jellicoe Road and I am pretty sure this book is her revenge.

A History of Glitter and Blood by Hannnah Moskowitz - this was a generous gift from Christina of Christina Reads YA! I love this author's unique style and am really curious to see what she does with fairies.


Won:

Shadowshaper by Daniel Jose Older --- I have wanted this since the cover was revealed. I love the tagline and it's gotten some great reviews. So excited to start it sooooon.


e-ARCs:

The Anatomical Shape of a Heart by Jenn Bennett
The Fixer by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Young Widows Club by Alexandra Coutts
Tonight the Streets Are Ours by Leila Sales
Dreamstrider by Lindsay Smith

Any new books you're particularly excited for coming out soon?

Book Tour Review: The Invasion of the Tearling by Erika Johansen

Title: The Invasion of the Tearling
Author: Erika Johansen
Genre: fantasy, science fiction
Series: The Queen of the Tearling #2
Pages: 515
Published: June 9 2015
Source: received from publishers via TLC Book Tours 
Rating: 5/5

With each passing day, Kelsea Glynn is growing into her new responsibilities as Queen of the Tearling. By stopping the shipments of slaves to the neighboring kingdom of Mortmesne, she crossed the Red Queen, a brutal ruler whose power derives from dark magic, who is sending her fearsome army into the Tearling to take what is hers. And nothing can stop the invasion.

But as the Mort army draws ever closer, Kelsea develops a mysterious connection to a time before the Crossing, and she finds herself relying on a strange and possibly dangerous ally: a woman named Lily, fighting for her life in a world where being female can feel like a crime. The fate of the Tearling —and that of Kelsea’s own soul—may rest with Lily and her story, but Kelsea may not have enough time to find out. 

I was a fan of the first book, but I loved the second. From the first chapter, the author, the characters, the plot don't miss a beat. Everything is magnified here in round two featuring the Tearling and Mortmesne: the stakes, the personalities, the plots, the worldbuilding, the battles. Johansen's debut and introduction to this story was good, but The Invasion of the Tearling is pretty damn great. It's creative and clever, and while the final big twist was a little predictable, it tied in so well with the story and the characters. 

I have to admit, I was a bunch of emotions when finishing this book. Johansen manages to pluck every cord with these characters. Kelsea evolves -- for better or worse; more is revealed about Lazarus aka the Mace; the Fetch hints and alludes and still remains the most intriguing character in the book. Johansen is pretty skilled at crafting flawed, realistic characters. Kelsea isn't always likeable but she's active and determined. The Red Queen is also shown to have new sides that while they don't excuse what she has done or become, make her a little more understandable.

I have to admit  for a while there I wasn't sold on Lily's connection to the main story from book number one and the more standard fantasy characters. It's a different brand of fantasy, whatever subgenre we want to call The Queen of the Tearling series, but it's one that mixes fantasy with contemporary with science fiction/time travel. The magic/science angle is the flimsiest aspect o the book but I overlooked it for how well it fit in with another twist (the resemblance to the painting.) Somehow, Johnansen made it work and I loved how it all came together right at the end.

This is pretty actiontastic at times, but not nearly as much as I expected from a book with a title that has "invasion" right there in it. However, the author is more concerned with the behind the scenes, the preparation, the negotiation that comes before a conflict. And while there is some violence and few skirmishes and battles, the main conflict in the story is between Kelsea and the Red Queen, or Kelsea and herself, or even Kelsea and the ghost of her mother. The invasion and threat that goes along with a hostile force gets the plot of the novel rolling, but it doesn't consist of most of the book's focus.
 
The Invasion of the Tearling was a great followup to The Queen of the Tearling. Hype can be misleading but for this series, it is dead on. If you like genre mashups or are into different types of fantasy, this is not a series to miss. It's clever and fun, moves at a good pace, and keeps interest for hundreds of pages.

Review: A Clockwork Heart by Liesel Schwarz

Title: A Clockwork Heart
Author: Lisesel Schwarz
Genre: steampunk, supernatural, historical fiction, young adult
Series: The Chronicles of Light and Shadow #2
Pages: 305
Published: August 13 2013
Source: publishers via NetGalley
Rating: 2/5

FOR BETTER OR CURSE. That might as well have been the wedding vow of Elle Chance and her new husband, the ex-Warlock Hugh Marsh in the second book of this edgy new series that transforms elements of urban fantasy, historical adventure, and paranormal romance into storytelling magic.

As Elle devotes herself to her duties as the Oracle—who alone has the power to keep the dark designs of Shadow at bay—Marsh finds himself missing the excitement of his former life as a Warlock. So when Commissioner Willoughby of the London Metropolitan police seeks his help in solving a magical mystery, Marsh is only too happy to oblige. But in doing so, Marsh loses his heart . . . literally.

In place of the flesh-and-blood organ is a clockwork device—a device that makes Marsh a kind of zombie. Nor is he the only one. A plague of clockwork zombies is afflicting London, sowing panic and whispers of revolution. Now Elle must join forces with her husband’s old friend, the Nightwalker Loisa Beladodia, to track down Marsh’s heart and restore it to his chest before time runs out.

This was a disappointment. For me, it turned out to be a tough slough for little reward. After being pretty enchanted with the first book in the series, A Conspiracy of Alchemists, no one is more surprised by my near complete antipathy for its successor than me. I wanted to love it. I tried to love it, honestly. I gave it multiple chapters, hundreds of pages, and a lot of frustration. Somehow, a three-hundred page novel felt like an 800-page behemoth. There are a couple unexpected twists that livened things up a bit, but for the most part, I read A Clockwork Heart feeling bored, annoyed, or anxious to be finally finished.

In a lot of ways, disappointed reviews are the hardest to write. With books that piss em off, it's easy to jump on the computer and rant away. With books that I love, it's fun to try to explain just what made that particular novel such a hit with me. If I am disappointed, all I can really say is there was a lot of potential for something greater than is and it was utterly ignored. So much of what was written felt bloated, superficial, and a much weaker effort than previous. The pace that rocketed the first from beginning to end is largely absent and its lack is very noticeable. If you're going to eschew action for character development, those characters had better be able to bear the closer scrutiny. Hint: these ones can't.
 
I thought Elle had grown into a better person and character at the end of book one, but that assumption is soon shown to be in error. She is just as selfish, immature as ever --- especially when she is around her new husband. All I can say is poor Marsh.  He is far from perfect (1900's English Noble husband? Ugh.) But this is a guy who has supported her, saved her, loved her, helped her, forgiven her, given up one of the most important parts of his life to do those things... and all she can do is resent the fact that she is a wife. I am sorry --- but you signed on for this when you willingly MARRIED THE GUY. A little maturity is apparently too much to ask for with Elle Chance. There's also little consistency to be found in either main character -- they flit from one persona to the next, depending on the author's need for drama.

Clothide, the villain, was the most interesting of the bunch. I know I am not supposed to root for the bad guy, but the woman in white vastly outstripped her counterparts in both personality and agency. Her agenda might be confusing to someone outside of Supernatural fandom (Remember the pilot episode -- the woman in white? Yeaaaah) and that should have been rectified. As for her clockwork zombies...well, they were inventive. And the other half the reason that this merited two stars. I am not sure how losing your heart renders you dead (heart transplants, anyone?), but these creations are weird and new.

I am not sure if my future holds a reading of Sky Pirates, the third in the series. I was pretty underwhelmed by a lot of  what A Clockwork Heart had to offer, but the first was a truly fun steampunk/supernatural/historical fiction adventure. Schwarz is one for two right now, but only time will tell if she can get her series back on the right track.

Backlist Review: Moonglow by Kristen Callihan

Title: Moonglow

Author: Kristen Callihan

Genre: romance novel-ish, historical fiction, supernatural

Series: Darkest London #2

Pages: 327 (Nook ARC edition)

Published: expected July 31 2012

Source: publishers via NetGalley

Rating: 2/5

Once the seeds of desire are sown . . .

Finally free of her suffocating marriage, widow Daisy Ellis Craigmore is ready to embrace the pleasures of life that have long been denied her. Yet her new-found freedom is short lived. A string of unexplained murders has brought danger to Daisy's door, forcing her to turn to the most unlikely of saviors . . .

Their growing passion knows no bounds . . .

Ian Ranulf, the Marquis of Northrup, has spent lifetimes hiding his primal nature from London society. But now a vicious killer threatens to expose his secrets. Ian must step out of the shadows and protect the beautiful, fearless Daisy, who awakens in him desires he thought long dead. As their quest to unmask the villain draws them closer together, Daisy has no choice but to reveal her own startling secret, and Ian must face the undeniable truth: Losing his heart to Daisy may be the only way to save his soul.

Sequel Syndrome strikes again! I had been looking forward to reading this direct follow-up to Callihan's engaging and fun first novel, Firelight, for months now. Upon randomly stumbling across and loving the first in the Darkest London series earlier this year, I was eager to see where Callihan would take her version of London run amok with the supernatural. First seeing this up on NetGalley, the anticipation of a good book when I was approved.. all added up to a lot of pressure and excitement on my part...which never really panned out here in Moonglow. A lot of the charm, the fun, the inventiveness that made the first so memorable and easy to read is missing here. I must admit that I really struggled to finish this, through the predictable plotlines, the meandering plot, the boring sections when nothing happens, though my ARC was only 300 pages. I've gone back and forth with my rating for this - from a 1.5 to a 2.75 to a 2.5 and then finally settli9ng a "2". It's not horrible, but it's just not good, either. Other fans of the first and the series don't seem to be nearly as disappointed as I was, but this is going down as my biggest let-down in months. It had so much potential, so much momentum from the first, and Moonglow utterly squanders both.

I hate the disappointment that often comes so easily to a series of books, usually right where Moonglow is in sequence - the volume between the first inception of a series and the finale of it all. The concepts that were so creative in the first book of Darkest London, just don't have the benefit of the originality, and so it falls to the characters and plot to make up for the lack. That never happens here. Never. Instead of the fresh concept of paranormal curses like what plagued Archer, Moonglow is just another romance novel werewolf tale. I wanted to like the two lead protagonists in Daisy Ellis and Ian Ranulf, but I never invested or connected with either person. It, that ineffable quality some characters possess to make you like them even against your will (see The Hound, Jaime Lannister, etc.),  just wasn't there for me. Not for Ian the charismatic, dark anti-hero of Benjamin Archer that I so easily fell under the sway of before. From a villain in the first book to the hero of the second, MacRanulf just fell entirely flat in his presentation, his character and his actions. I also couldn't buy his motivations and change of character from one book to the next. An anti-hero or a man with a dark past is one thing, but the Ian from Firelight was an ass, one I hated, and I therefore couldn't (wouldn't?) buy into his Poor Noble With A Troubled Heart act here in book two. Callihan did her work too well with the first novel with his character for me to see him as sympathetically as she tries so hard to paint him here.

Daisy, his obvious love interest from the first book, had plenty of sass but it felt forced, and disjointed when with her lover. Their tart, acerbic banter could be amusing on occasion, but for the most part, left me cold and disbelieving of their affections for one another. I don't even have a lot to say about Daisy. She was there, she did what she had to move the book along.  She's blah, meh, milquetoast to the tip of her blonde head. I missed Miranda's fire, excuse the pun. The third person POV doesn't really do any favors for either lead: perhaps had I read inner monologues and thoughts I would've cared at all more. I certainly  liked that Daisy was independent and had a mind of her own, but I just couldn't connect with her. I wanted both her and Ian to mature the hell up and act like adults instead of the "I like him/her so I am going to be as rude, inscrutable, cold and mysterious as possible" act that went on for far too long. This isn't young-adult literature, people. This is a romance novel with supernatural elements: please stop with the teenage melodrama and wishy-washy bullshit.We all know you're going to fall in love and bang - please don't make the read there unbearable. When the romance finally did happen along, proceeding as we all knew it would, I had issues; partially due to their weird interactions leading up to that point, but I wasn't into it. The two complement each other well, sure, but I just didn't care about their love lives, their sex scenes or, above all, their angst over the other. If I don't care about either character independently, why would I care when they're together? Oh right: I don't and I didn't.

The mythology of the weres and the lycans is weak.  I can't think of another way to put it. It's not explained nearly enough and seems to be ridiculously arbitrary. <spoiler> Why are female lycans and weres so rare? If they as a species reproduce so infrequently, how come there are so many mentioned? How did the clan come into being? Are all the weres/lycans supposed to be alone their whole lives? Are they homosexual by nature? Then how does the breed survive? Why doesn't the bite of a werewolf turn a human? And if the bite is so weak, how could the disease be passed so easily? </spoiler?>  See? I have many, many questions upon finishing this...none of which are even close to be answered. All that mess adds up to a very unsatisfactory read, full of holes and problems; showing a novel that doesn't take the time to flesh out its own world and lore. I also have to note that this has a Scottish werewolf pack with members named Maccon, Conall, and a beta named Lyall. That doesn't sound at all familiar to fans of Gail Carriger's delightful Parasol Protectorate series, does it? Noo, not at all. Coincidence, or homage? Either way, it's too close to home for yet another alternate supernatural history of England to name their wolfen members such names.

Too much of the plot here was predictable, when it even cared to make an appearance (which was rarer than the female lycans mentioned in passing.) I called two of the key twists long before they happened, to my immense chagrin. I don't remember the first novel's plot as being this transparent and was surprised at how obvious a lot of the "mystery" was to the reader. A little more authorial sleight-of-hand to camouflage the clues would've gone a long way. Long stretches of boredom permeated my one-day read of the novel; sections filled with the annoying back and forth of the main character, with absolutely no plot advancement. Seriously, for like 75 pages, everyone forgets there is a mad, murderous werewolf on the loose. Other elements just felt stuffed in, randomly, like the GIMs, who don't serve any real purpose til the end... <spoiler>when they really do become deux-ex-machinas, or ghosts in the machine.</spoiler> That whole bit just seemed like lazy writing to me - an easy out to fix a plot point. I expected more from what was there - without the side filler and angst, this would've been a much stronger, more enjoyable read.

I'm torn. I like to finish what I start, but I don't know if I will be continuing the Darkest London series with the third Ellis sister installment: Winterblaze. Kristen Callihan has an easy style, but I was not happy with this latest effort. Much weaker, much less original, much less detailed, and with much more off-putting leads, than Firelight, Moonglow was big swing and a miss. Callihan is 1 for 2 so far, and only time will tell if I give my disappointment time to cool.... and  choose to pick up the third.