The Hero of Ages / Brandon Sanderson

 

3.5 stars

This is my final reading project book of 2023 and I have lots of thoughts about it. To my mind, this was the best book of the trilogy. It made me realize how slow the pacing was in the first two novels. All of a sudden, Sanderson quits teasing us with obscure hints and lambastes us with the details of WTF is going on.

Vin and Elend have become more like business partners than a married couple. Yes, they work together well, but the passion is all for the people of the kingdom, rather than each other. On other relationship fronts, the major characters are all matched up—Breeze with Allriane, Ham gets reunited with his family, and Sanderson creates Beldre especially to pair up with Spook. Unfortunately, these pairings felt wooden to me. Everyone must have a match, but none of these relationships are really important to the plot.

The best part for me was the closer look that we got at the Kandra, the Terris people, and the Inquisitors, even the Koloss. The reveals about the nature of Allomancy and Feruchemy were the most interesting part of the tale, especially since Allomancy has always seemed too logical and regimented to me. Magic should be…..well, magical. Not subject to analysis or completely predictable. Now the mathematical nature of the system makes more sense—the combinations of metals with various abilities to create certain kinds of being.

The central idea of the series seems to be the nature and necessity of faith. We watch Sazed struggle with a loss of faith and his desire to have his faith restored. He has suffered the loss of the woman he loved, a circumstance that tests many people. If you have lost significant people in your life, you can relate to some part of his situation. The final verdict seems to be the obvious: faith cannot be proven, only experienced. I'm a little muzzy on whether one can actually choose faith, as several characters do. Can you force yourself to feel faith? The jury's still out on the issue for me.

I'm a fan of messy, uncertain endings, so this book wrapped up a little too neatly for my taste. Not a bad end, just too easily resolved. But I know lots of folk prefer this kind of resolution, so I am in the minority there.

Book number 510 of my Science Fiction and Fantasy Reading Project

Murder Most Royal / S.J. Bennett

 

4 out of 5 stars

This novel was obviously published after the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in 2022, although in the acknowledgements Bennett reveals that she handed in the proofs on the day that the Queen passed. Her obvious affection for the Royals, the English countryside, the gardens, the history and the traditions shines throughout the book. She humanizes the Royal family, showing them to be normal people who are part of a famous family.

ASP Rozie Oshodi, inspired creation that she is, gets less page time in this outing than in the previous two installments. Her Maj gets to do more of her own sleuthing here, although Rozie has several important assignments. In her delicate, diplomatic way, the Queen gathers the information needed to reach the proper conclusion and then makes the necessary suggestions and hints to lead the police to them too.

Naturally, continuing the series after the monarch's death is a ticklish business. By peeking ahead, I have learned that Bennett goes back in time, to 1957. In this way, she has a much younger Royal protagonist and a great deal more runway for future investigations. I'll be interested to see what she does with both things.

Slashing Through the Snow / Jacqueline Frost

 

3 out of 5 stars

Evan Gray is an exceptionally patient man! If my competence as an investigator was as thoroughly questioned by my significant other, I would be angrily stomping away. This is one of the cozy mystery tropes that drives me the craziest! The absolute conviction of the main character that the police can't possibly do a good job of solving the crime. I mean, if you're Holly and you're dating the sheriff and think he's your potential husband, don't you think you should rely on him to know what he's doing professionally?

I've knocked off a star because of this view of mine. If I can temporarily overlook it, the mystery is reasonably good. I didn't see the solution coming, though I was pretty sure that someone would be threatening Holly before the book's end.

Two other things irked me in this book. Does Holly eat anything that isn't chock full of sugar? It's all cookies, cupcakes, hot chocolate, and maple syrup. No wonder the woman can't sleep! She's so hopped up on sucrose that she must be trembling. That must be how she also has the time to do the ridiculous amount of work that she apparently does: toy collection, gift wrapping, helping with tree farm events, shopping, jewelry making, inn keeping, not to mention cat care (I still love her cat, Cindy Lou Who).

Perhaps I have something in common with the Grinch? I just couldn't let go of these gripes this time out!

Wolfsbane and Mistletoe

 

3.5 stars

This was a fun Christmas collection. Yes, it has some of the same seasonal schmaltz, but with a bit of blood and guts to counteract the saccharine. There are the expected names: Charlaine Harris and Patricia Briggs. I had previously encountered Briggs' story, but enjoyed reading it again. I was pleasantly surprised to find Donna Andrews represented. I should have realized that she could write more than the cozy mystery series that she's best known for.

All of the entries were fun and interesting in some way. Unlike so many of these collections, there were no duds. If you are looking for something with a Christmas theme plus werewolves, look no further.

The Raven in the Foregate / Ellis Peters

 

4 out of 5 stars

Another short entry in a series that I have been saving for Christmas reading. It does take place during the Yuletide season, but in an environment that few of us will be familiar with, the monastery. Not many of us spend Christmas Eve singing and praying through the night into Christmas Day! I do wonder if our society would be better off if we focused more on the spirit of the season and less on the material aspects.

The story has many of the elements that Peters favours: a young man using an alias, a young woman who likes what she sees, the reveal of the young man's true identity, the search for him, and the near miss of discovery. The entangled story of the priest whose lack of compassion shows him to be completely unsuitable for the position that he has been given. How will the Abbot deal with him, when he is proud of his lack of flexibility?

So, not the most Christmassy of my December choices, but as enjoyable as I usually find Brother Cadfael.

Sugar Plum Spies / Jennifer Estep

 

3.5 stars

I've been saving this novella for Christmas reading. It's a cute and sentimental entry in Estep's Section 47 series. Charlotte and Desmond crash an exclusive Christmas party held in a German castle as part of their pursuit of the deadly Henrika Hyde. It seems that they have been anticipated and their operation quickly goes sideways. Now they will find out if Gabriel Chase, a deadly ex-cleaner, is for them or against them.

I'm assuming that the mysterious female caller at the novella's end indicates that there will be future Section 47 adventures to come. I look forward to seeing what Charlotte and Desmond do next.

Double Eagle / Thomas King

 

5 out of 5 stars

Once again, a Thomas King book was out for months before I heard of it. Despite the fact that I follow him on Goodreads and should have been notified by the New releases feature. Please register my reaction as “disgruntled.” How did I finally hear about it, you ask? On one of my favourite radio shows,The Next Chapter on CBC, that's how. Where this series was described as “cozy mysteries for emotionally stunted men.” Not sure quite what to think of that, since I adore Thumps DreadfulWater. Perhaps they are for emotionally stunted women as well?

It took me a few pages to settle back into Thumps’ life in Chinook, but it was like slipping into an old comfortable pair of boots. It just felt right. Life never stays the same and there have been changes in the town, and not just that Thumps now has two cats. If you know the cast of characters, you will learn what's happening with them all. I appreciate this more than the actual mystery (which was good, BTW, and sufficiently mysterious). But it's best to find out what's up with Duke and Macy, Moses, Cooley, Morris Dumbo, the Heavy Runners, Al and her restaurant, Claire and Ivory, to mention a few. And to meet new folks to care about (Scoop for example).

We also have the return of Cruz, always good for amusing dialogue. Plus the FBI agent who he is accompanying, whose relationship to Cruz is frequently up for debate. Dialogue is where King shines, along with his charming cast of characters. Plot may come third, but the author doesn't stint on that either. He makes it look as easy as pie (to eat, not to make).

If you haven't tried Thumps DreadfulWater, what are you waiting for? Please consider this review to be your engraved invitation. You could jump in at any point, but why not at the beginning with DreadfulWater? If you don't like Mr. DreadfulWater, my apologies, but kindly don't shit on anyone else's enjoyment, okay?

Please, Mr. King, may we have some more? I know you said you were done writing, some stuff and nonsense about being too old. Please, pretty please, take a leaf out of that other King's book (that's Stephen King, BTW) and know that I will be treasuring and re-reading your books for as many years to come as I've got. Thank you, sir, for your fabulous writing.

Crooked House / Agatha Christie

 

4 out of 5 stars

2023 Re-read

Unusually, I remembered whodunit but my memory had gaping holes regarding the why and how. I had forgotten just enough to make the re-reading process enjoyable. It has been 7 years since I first read it, so not surprising.

Christie seems to have had a fondness for nursery rhymes and basing books on them. She regarded this book as one of her best. As she notes in the introduction, however, readers may not concur with the author. I think I liked this book better the second time around, but it's not one of my favourite of her novels (my heart belongs to Miss Marple).

Though it's not a favourite, I'm bumping up my star rating from 3 stars to four, mainly because I agree with Christie that it's one of her better written mysteries.

Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone / Benjamin Stevenson

 

4 out of 5 stars

What a relief, to actually enjoy the chosen book for my mystery book club! I couldn't finish last month's book so I'm pleased to find this one more congenial.

Stevenson gives us an interesting narrator, Ernie Cunningham, who writes “how to" guides for aspiring authors. He has particular interest and opinions on mystery books. Before we are introduced to the story, we get a page with the 10 Commandments of Detective Fiction, from the 1930s. Ern reminds us of these rules all the way through the novel. In fact, the bulk of the narration breaks the fourth wall, as Ern addresses the reader, explaining things, justifying things, commenting on things.

Now, the freaky thing for me is that I have Cunningham cousins and they had an Uncle Ern. Ern and his wife separated, she moved away and was murdered (the case went cold & has never been resolved). So this felt kind of like art imitating life in a weird way.

The mystery here is complex with lots of moving parts, I found it challenging to keep up. The family dynamics are both revealing and distracting for both Ern and this reader. Nevertheless, the antics were highly entertaining and I had no difficulties with focus or attention, both things that I have struggled with of late. I was also pleased to comprehend the author's sense of humour, not a given for me. I think that the Canadian and Australian senses of humour must be similar, making it easier for this humour challenged Canuck.