Sunday Review Post, 3/11/2012

Myke Cole - Shadow Ops: Control Point

Magic and the US military - very interesting premise, and a lot better than it could have been. 


First, this is an excellent example of mil fic. It verges on military porn in a couple of places - the gun was SOOOO big, the helicopter flew THIS fast, etc etc - but it was fun for the most part. The pace was quick, the characters were compelling. The premise, though, was what kept this fresh.


Some point in the near future, magic "erupts" all over the world. Magic shakes out into several "schools." I had to take the book back, so I don't have the official names in front of me, and wikipedia has failed me - but there are schools for the four "elements" - earth, air, fire, and water. There's a healing magic. Those are the "approved" schools. The "unapproved" schools are necromancy (magic animating the dead), "whispering" (controlling animals), negromancy (black magic - magically induced corruption), elemental magic (creating self-aware elemental beings), and portamancy (magically opening doors between our reality and another one). The military, especially in the US, has quickly moved to take control of mages. If you discover that you have magic, you pretty much find yourself in the army, which is the only place to get training in the magical arts. Mages who resist serving in the army are "selfers" - only interested in themselves. "Selfers" are tracked down by the military and given a choice - serve, or die. If you erupt in one of the unapproved schools, you're a "probe" - a prohibited mage. "Probes" are hunted down and eliminated. Officially. Unofficially, there are lots of rumors that the military has a secret training facility for the "probe" schools.


Oscar Britton, the protagonist in this book, is an Army officer. After working to defuse a magically powered Columbine situation, Britton erupts in a "probe" school, and runs. He is tracked down, and, officially, killed. But there wouldn't be much of a book if that were all there was, so I don't think it's much of a spoiler to suggest that the rumors are true. Britton gets training in his school, and works with an elite unit of similarly skilled mages to help the military do things.


So, second, the book provides a fascinating contrast with other "magic training" stories. I found myself thinking of Harry Potter, of course, but also Lev Grossman.  Britton's training is not like Hogwarts, but nor is it like Brakesbills, or even the "hobbyist" schools of Grossman's second novel. Cole offers an entirely different take on magical training. Britton goes through a magical boot camp, learning the military applications of his abilities, and the ways in which he can work alongside others in combat situations. His talent allows him to help in search and rescue type situations, but it's also a powerful force multiplier in combat. Britton and his team of four other mages effectively destroy rifle battalions. It makes you wonder what Harry and Ron and Hermione could have done with proper training...


Third, the book is full of some interesting thoughts about military service. What responsibility does a soldier have if he feels he's being asked to do something illegal? Is that illegality balanced by the moments in which he is asked to do things that are heroic? Does it matter if the orders are not illegal, but merely morally questionable? Britton wrestles with his talent, and he wrestles with his role in the military, and he wrestles with some serious moral dilemmas. The whole book is, as a result, surprisingly deep, while still being fun and fast paced. Fans of mil fic who are sufficiently open minded about the idea of magic will enjoy this. Magic fans, who are sufficiently open minded about the idea of the military, will also enjoy it. Cole has found an entirely new niche, and filled it quite nicely. I look forward to the rest of the trilogy.
Walter Mosley - Devil in a Blue Dress

Pretty good for a first novel, or at least a first novel in a series. I think Mosley falls into a couple of cliches, but I think the book is overall solid, and I really like Easy Rawlins as a character. Side note - some previous reader appended comments throughout, and said previous reader was an ass. And, possibly, an asshole, which isn't quite the same thing. I don't really have a great deal else to say about the book - it's a fairly straight forward mystery novel. Two things I did like. First, Easy doesn't start out as a detective, but sort of falls into the job. Second, the descriptions of 1948 Los Angeles were fascinating. Two things I didn't like. A heavy reliance on child abuse and sexual abuse as a motive/plot point - this feels a little cliche, actually (also, trigger warning). Of course, this is an older novel, so perhaps it's not as much of a cop out as it feels.


Finally, to the ass who appended comments - in 1948, Negro was not a nationality, but Italian was very much a race. Also, how would you describe someone of mixed Negro and Italian parentage if not as "half-Negro, half-Italian"? 

A. Lee Martinez - Chasing the Moon


A surprisingly delightful novel, much much better than I thought it would be round about the middle of the book. The over all vibe of the book was very Christopher Moore/Tom Holt - witty, and heavily character driven, with not a lot of plot. As such, by about the middle of the book, I began to dread the inevitable weak ending - Martinez drove his characters into a corner, and there was a great possibility that they would not be able to get out, or would require the assistance of a suddenly revealed alternate actor. Thankfully, Martinez did not resort to either option, but instead offers a strong and satisfying ending. 


Diana moves into a new apartment with fantastic rent, only to discover that there's a big catch. The bedroom closet houses an immortal beast from some other dimension - Vom the Hungering - and, if she opens the door, Vom will eat her (and everything else in his path). But, if she doesn't open the closet, she'll be stuck inside the apartment forever. Since either choice would result in a very short (but potentially interesting) book, Diana finds a third option, and effectively "tames" Vom, who becomes an amusing, if voracious, side kick. Diana soon acquires an array of other oddities, and finds herself helping out the superintendent - super of the building, but also, to some extent, of reality itself. 


Meanwhile, a cult based around a two part deity - Calvin, the earth-bound human form, and Fenris, the monster who chases the moon (yes, it should be Managarmr. Yes, Martinez addresses this). Naturally, Diana and the cult end up in conflict with each other, and ultimately this is resolved in the aforementioned satisfying ending.


In terms of pacing, the book is very much like a long short story, with a great deal of build up to a climax, with almost no denument at all. That's fine, it works quite well in this case. In the end, a fascinatingly quirky novel full of fascinatingly quirky characters, and not a lot of plot, but just enough to keep the thing moving along. Worth a look.

Aaaaand we're back

Internet is up and running as of Wednesday. All of our stuff is out of the old apartment and into the new apartment. I've read books and such. Here's a snippet view; expect a fuller review, maybe later today, maybe later this weekend.

First, from the library this week:

Jason Heller - Taft 2012


Heller is doing something interesting here. He suggests that President Taft vanished from the White House during President Wilson's inauguration (which he didn't, incidentally - Taft went on to become Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and his son and grandson were both significant Senators), and that he reappeared in 2012, just in time to influence the 2012 presidential elections. So, Heller is doing a little alt hist (how would the world be different if Taft had vanished) and a lot of political satire (but it's oddly gentle satire - not nearly biting enough). I'm actually reading this now, because I couldn't resist. Taft is, actually, one of my favorite presidents.

Elizabeth Moon - Echoes of Betrayal


The most recent of the Paksanarrion novels.

Second, snippet reviews:

Myke Cole - Shadow Ops: Control Point


Magic and the US military - very interesting premise, and a lot better than it could have been. Fascinating contrast with other "magic training" stories - this is not the Hogwarts model, folks!

Walter Mosley - Devil in a Blue Dress


Pretty good for a first novel, or at least a first novel in a series. I think Mosley falls into a couple of cliches, but I think the book is overall solid, and I really like Easy Rawlins as a character. Side note - some previous reader appended comments throughout, and said previous reader was an ass. And, possibly, an asshole, which isn't quite the same thing.

A. Lee Martinez - Chasing the Moon


A surprisingly delightful novel, much much better than I thought it would be round about the middle of the book. Heavily character driven, not a lot of plot, but a strong and satisfying ending.

And the Lenten book for the week:

Connie Willis - Bellwether

As my wife says, this one is kinda cheating, because it's almost inconceivable that I would willingly part with this book. But I decided to start with an "easy keeper," to establish a benchmark. So. It's a good book, and I'll tell you about it later, but the end result is, I'm keeping the book.

Not a Friday post

It looks likely that we'll be packing up the computer tomorrow, and so won't have internet access until Wednesday, probably. So you'll have to wait until then for the review and such.

Library Wednesday?, 2/29/2012

Happy Leap Day!

Two books from the library on Monday:

Walter Mosley - Devil in the Blue Dress


I heard an interview with Mosley, and said "y'know, I've enjoyed the Mosley that I've read, why haven't I read more?," so I picked up this one, the first of his Easy Rawlins mystery novels.

Cassandra Clark - A Parliament of Spies


Another mystery novel, set during the reign of Richard II of England.

Lenten Project

Eeep! Surprisingly Nude Bookcase!

This is the big bookcase today. There are two small stacks of books there on the next to top shelf - one is a stack of text books* and the smaller stack is library books.

Anyway, the semi-nude bookcase is courtesy of the relocation we're in the process of. Currently, there is a huge stack of boxes in the living room of the new apartment - I should really take a photo of that for you too. Which brings me to my Lenten project this year. Each week of Lent, I will read (at least) one book that I already own, and I will then assess whether I'll keep the book or get rid of it. (ouch!) The whole process of moving has already resulted in 5 (count them!) grocery sacks of books which we've donated to the local library sale. Potentially, I will offer my discards to you, my readers, if there's interest - otherwise, to the library they will go.

*The text books - as a a professor, text book companies see me as a gatekeeper for my students' wallets. If they can convince me to choose a book for my class, then my students are compelled to buy that book, which is, obviously, good for the text book companies. So, they mail me (and every other professor with the power to choose books for their classes) free copies of their books. And I mostly ignore them, because I've already chosen my texts.** So, that stack is a stack of free text books that is on it's way back to campus to get deposited in the text book room in the department - the department has a room full of text books that they can give out to new professors trying to decide what books they want, or to students who need a text but can't afford them and etc. Which is pretty cool, frankly.

** My texts this semester:

Cultural History

Political History

Military History

I'm using a lot of Bedford/St. Martin readers this semester, because I like their selection of primary sources, and I like the way that their editors frame the material. And because the readers are fairly cheap individually. My students only need to buy one of these books each. I also recommend they pick up this one:

This is the single best text on studying history I've ever read - it's just amazing what Benjamin packs into it; instructions on taking notes, ideas on how to write basic papers, how to do comparisons between different types of sources, how to write essay type tests, how to write multiple choice type tests, how to do footnotes ... it's brilliant, and you really need a copy. 

Students who want a traditional text are advised to consider this one. It's fairly unremarkable as far as text books go, but it's a Bedford/St.Martin - consistency isn't always a bad thing. I advise students to find three or four fellow students to split the cost of the text book - I have no idea how many, if any, students do as I advise, but it's good advice.

I believe my footnote is now officially longer than the post it's a footnote for. 

Witty Post Title Here

I made it to the library on Thursday, and picked up a couple of books:

Christopher Phillips - Constitution Cafe


Phillips tours around the US, talking to folks about the US constitution with the intention of writing a new draft of the document. Seems interesting.

Daniel O'Malley - The Rook


So, the tag is "On Her Majesty's Supernatural Secret Service" - beyond that, I didn't really need to read the dust jacket.

___________________

I also read five books this week. Well, four, and finished Dance With Dragons, but I had almost 200 pages of Dragons left to read, which is most of a novel all by itself, right? So, five.

George R.R. Martin - A Dance with Dragons


 The most recent of the Song of Ice and Fire books. I said last week that this book was too long, and I really think it was. Martin's innovative bit in this series is the use of lots and lots of point of view characters. It's a big deal, and it's realistically what keeps me reading the books - Martin has this gift of making a whole array of characters work. But, in this book, it feels a little out of hand. There were several points where I felt that I didn't really need another character. There were several places where I would start a new chapter and say "c'mon, I want to find out what's happening with the chapter I just finished," and then I'd get into the new chapter, and then it would end, and I'd say "c'mon, I want to know what's happening with the chapter that I just finished." And yet, were there fewer characters, surely I would miss something. Plus, it's dangerous to wish that Martin had fewer characters, because he's inclined to kill characters, and, often, it's the character that you really care about. So.

Still, the fear that I felt through this book is this: What if, when I finish reading the series, I look back, and discover that I really don't like the cumulative effect? A strong element of the series is unpleasant people doing nasty things to each other; I think there's a strong chance that, when the series is done, I'm not going to like what's left - the characters I like will be dead, the message will be "a strong dictator is necessary to make society function," and that's not something I want to see. But there's only one way to find that out, and that's to finish the series.

This book in particular is about identity. Various characters put on false faces over the course of the novel in order to survive. Other characters find themselves doing what they think is right, even though they don't want to. The characters who do the best in this book are the ones who remain closest to their central identity; the others find themselves getting swallowed by the false identity they've created for themselves (or had created for them), or they end up stabbed in the back. "To thine ownself be true," I suppose.

I'm not going to avoid the next book; there are still characters in the series that I like, and I do want to know how the story ends. I'm not going to wish for fewer characters, because Martin is holding my favorites ransom. I don't know how assiduously I'll look for the next book, though. This one was a slog, and I only enjoyed about 70% of it - maybe 80%.

Henry Alford - Would it Kill you to Stop Doing That?


As a tonic for Martin's unrelenting grey world, Alford could not have been better. This book sparkles - an exploration of the idea of manners and etiquette with a delightfully light tone. The tone throughout is snarky in that way that only a gay New Yorker can be snarky (which is to say, slightly less snarky than someone from the 1940's - although, a gay New Yorker writing during the 1940s - perhaps that would be unsustainable levels of snark, I don't know...).

Despite the light tone, Alford tackles a serious issue - etiquette, and the way we teach it. He concludes that manners are, on an important level, entirely artificial, and yet, on another important level, entirely critical to our continued survival as a species. He ponders the way that manners have evolved over time, and the way in which they are under pressure in this world of electronic media.  He looks at the writing of several etiquette columnists, and tries his hand at offering etiquette advice. He visits Tokyo, and describes his job as a visit coordinator in New York. There's a lot of stuff in this book!

All in all, a delightful read; light, but deep, and well worth a look.

Kevin Hearne - Hounded


The first of the Iron Druid series. Atticus O'Sullivan is a multi-centuries old Druid, living in Arizona, running a occult book shop, and hiding from the Celtic love god, Aengus Og, who wants Atticus' sword. And to run the Tuatha De Dannan.

This was a fun book, with lots of funny bits, and a bunch of action. Hearne has put a great deal of thought into  how Atticus would approach the modern world, and has obviously done at least a little research on Iron Age druids and Celtic deities. Plus, there's a talking Irish Wolfhound, and I'm a sucker for a talking dog. Although my wife complained that the dog was too smart - I dunno.

First book in a series, but Hearne ends it solidly, with only the most basic of loose ends to tie into the next book. However, my local library system owns the second and third book, but the second book is being repaired, so I may have to wait some time before I get to find out what happens next.

Adam Selzer - Extraordinary


This is a world sequel from I Kissed a Zombie, and I Liked It - the book is set in the same Iowa setting, where zombies and vampires have "come out of the coffin," but a couple of years (I think, I haven't read the first one) later, and with a totally different cast of characters (except, possibly, Fred the vampire).

Jenny Van Der Burg narrates this book as a counter narrative to Born to Be Extraordinary, which is the "fictional" account of her encounter with a fairy godmother, as told by Eileen Codlin. I was hoping for a little more of "Codlin's" narrative, but Selzer gives enough - a passage or so before each chapter - for the counter-narrative to work. Van Der Burg insists that the way things happened is entirely different from what Codlin says, and that all of the girls who have started camping on her lawn in order to be turned into princesses should just get over themselves and go home...

Narratively, this is a relatively straight-forward YA high school novel, with vampires and a fairy god - well he's not a god mother. He prefers "godmofo." A performance of The Music Man features, as does a very smelly unicorn, and a young man named Mutual.

In the end, this is slightly deeper than the set up would suggest, but not much. It's a quick read; quirky and light, and an interesting addition to the "vampire at high school" ouvre. I'm happy to say, though, that my concept for a fairy godmother centered novel is firmly intact.

Ally Carter - Uncommon Criminals


Speaking of quirky and light - this is the sequel to Heist Society - a cute little caper novel with a high school aged girl as the protagonist. Katarina Bishop has decided, after the events of the previous novel, that she will only steal stuff that has been wrongfully taken from its owner - paintings stolen by Nazis, for instance. She is approached by a woman with a story about an emerald - supposedly once owned by Cleopatra, and discovered by the woman's archeologist parents, but then stolen by their unscrupulous assistant. She contracts Katrina to steal the emerald back. Of course, the emerald is cursed - what would be the point otherwise? - and also heavily guarded. Still, Kat puts together her string, and they (somewhat reluctantly) set out to steal the stone.

This has all of the elements of a good caper novel, with a little teen romance/angst thrown in for good measure. It has complex schemes with absurd names. It has flashy locations (Monte Carlo! Paris!). It has painstaking actions scenes where crooks have to work through a series of tasks under exacting conditions. It has double and triple crosses. It doesn't have the pratfall ending where everyone gets part of what they want, but no-one gets everything; I suppose I can't have everything. Anyway, it's delightful, a little silly, but generally good - I recommend it for fans of YA and fans of caper novels. A nice sequel.

Not a Friday Review, 2/19/2012

So. We have begun the process of moving our stuff into the new apartment. Boxes that had previously been piled in the dining room here are now piled in the living room there. Bookcases have started their migration. Kitchen supplies too.

The youngest has developed a lovely habit - she won't go to sleep without spending time with me. This is endearing, but it limits what I can do before bed. A not-sleepy baby is conducive to watching tv, but not to reading (because she can't grab the tv out of my hands).

Also, Dance with Dragons is really really long. unnaturally, unnecessarily long. And I have not finished it yet. But I will finish it, and when I do, I'll post my review.

No library this week, probably - libraries are closed Monday for Presidents' Day, and the rest of the week seems busy. We shall see.