Book Review- The Strain by Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan

The Strain by Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan

I don't usually do this, but I am going to use the blurb from the back of the book for the summary, just because I don't want to give anything away...

"They have always been here. Vampires.
Nesting and feeding.
In secret and in darkness. Waiting.
Now their time has come.
In one week, Manhattan will be gone.
In three months, the country. In six months-the world."

I was really excited about getting this book and had been anxiously waiting to find time to read it. When I finally opened it up and got started I became a bit worried that I had built it up a little too much in my head. My expectations were a bit high. I was expecting something similar in style to Pan's Labyrinth but didn't get it.

Now, I did enjoy it, but the beginning was a bit slow. Nothing really captured my interest until page 125 and that was quite a way in. The events leading up to the characters' realization of what they are up against were dragged out, minute by minute. A trip to the medical examiner finally speeds things up and the book gets much more interesting, creepy and fun.

This is a slightly different take on the vampire invasion story. A bit similar to I Am Legend... but, before Will Smith is left all on his own.  (I have only seen the movie, haven't read the book yet). The vampires were different than the norm and quite scary which I liked. 

This is the first book of a trilogy so I suspect now that characters have been introduced and story begun, the next two books should be much quicker to get started and full of vampire fun.

The book comes out June 2nd.

3/5

Book Review- The Disappearance by Efrem Sigel

The Disappearance by Efrem Sigel

" 'It's been two weeks; do you have any idea what that does to a person? Your child missing, almost certainly dead and you don't know how or why.' " page 95

I posted this line for Teaser Tuesday this past week because it perfectly describes what this book is about. Joshua and Natalie Sandler come home one day to find their 14 year old son, Dan, gone. The police, their community and friends have no idea what has happened to him-dead or alive, kidnapped or a runaway-there are no answers. The book focuses on how Dan's parents deal with this terrible situation.

How would you deal with it? Would you ever give up your search for answers? Would you completely shut down and forget all about the other people and things you love in your life? What happens to the marriage when spouses react differently?

This was a very interesting and different take on the missing child story. Instead of focusing on the mystery of what happened to Dan, it deals with the people affected by his disappearance. The affect of not knowing what happened.

The only problem I had were the sex scenes. They seemed a bit awkward, the wording a departure from the rest of the book. Perhaps it was the use of certain words that made me want to skip these sections (only two), words that would seem more at home in another type of book.

3/5



A to Z Reading Challenge

Book Review- Fault Line by Barry Eisler

Fault Line: A Novel by Barry Eisler

When a client with a new encryption software (Obsidian) and the officer in charge of the patent application are both found dead, Alex Treven turns to his estranged brother for help after being threatened himself. His brother, Ben, is an assassin for the US Government who unwittingly finds himself back in the Bay Area to help his younger brother, who he has not spoken to in six years.

The story of the brothers' estrangement and family history is nicely mixed with the suspense and action of trying to hide and stay alive of those who would like to wipe all traces of Obsidian away. Very entertaining and fast paced, full of great Bay Area places that I am familiar with. Very fun to read and get lost in for an afternoon.

I got this book through Library Thing's Early Reviewers. The book will be released on March 10th.

4/5

AtoZ Challenge

Book Review- Skeleton Creek

Skeleton Creek by Patrick Carman

This is the perfect book for the YouTube watching, reluctant reader. What a great concept, mixing the two medias. Before the book has even been released there are websites and YouTube videos available to garner interest in the book. Sites with easter eggs and conspiracy theories can be found just by googling "Skeleton Creek". It is quite amazing.

So, is the book worth all the hype?

Well, that depends on what you are expecting. If you are expecting a fast-paced, entertaining and interactive read to get your kids interested in reading. This is it.

The book is written as a journal by 15 year old Ryan who loves to write and read ghost stories. His best friend, Sarah, loves her video camera and a good mystery to investigate. Since the two have been seperated from each other because of an accident during an investigation late at night on an abandoned Dredge, they are forced to communicate with each other in secret through email and video clips while they continue to investigate.

I really think kids are going to love this mixed media ghost story and they will definitely get hooked with the cliff hanger. It is rather fun going to sarahfincher.com and entering the passwords as they come up in the book. Also, parents, lots of really great literature is mentioned throughout. It just might get some kids interested in checking them out next time they are in the library.

There were a few minor issues I had and they are rather nitpicky so I am not even going to mention them. They mostly have to do with the videos.

Anyway, the book comes out February 10th.

4/5

First Giveaway

I was sent an extra copy of Any Given Doomsday by Lori Handeland which means I have an ARC to giveaway.

If you are interested, leave me a comment between now and Friday, October 10th.

Any Given Doomsday-Book Review

I was really hoping to enjoy this book. Considering the books I normally read, this seemed a perfect fit to me. Unfortunately, it falls a little short of my expectations for a good urban-fantasy read. I don't expect great literature, but I do want believable characters, fast-paced action, and scary monsters.

I couldn't relate to the protagonist, Elizabeth Phoenix, a psychic ex-cop turned bartender. I also didn't care about the relationship between her and her childhood love, Jimmy Sarducci. (I will not be going into my problems with the names.) I know he is supposed to be the "bad boy" type, but really, he's just not like-able and I couldn't understand or believe the attraction.

The mystery starts off right at the beginning when Elizabeth's friend and former guardian is found murdered. She discovers that Ruthie was a "seer" that helped demon killers find their prey and somehow passed her gifts on to Liz. The middle was a little slow while Elizabeth comes to grips with her newfound knowledge and gifts. The action picks back up towards the end, but in a very different way than I was expecting. The book went from urban-fantasy to racy romance book and not in a good way. The amount of sex going on for what seems like the entire last 1/4 of the book is not romantic, just disturbing and doesn't help in making me like or respect Phoenix as a female character I want to read about.

The monsters were somewhat interesting and different from the usual batch of supernaturals that fill the fantasy books I love. They are very obscure, however, so I felt the need to research a bit. Not something I really want to do while reading this type of book.

I think if the "romance" plot line was left out or if Elizabeth was given a better way to absorb others powers this would have made for a much better read. It was good enough to keep me reading to the end but there are definitely much better urban-fantasy books with much stronger more likable women protagonists.

2/5

You can see Blacklin's review of Any Given Doomsday on her blog, Blacklin's Reading Room Reviews & More.