A fun time cheering for terrible people

 Oh my,  at 35.5 Richmans,  "The Malificent Seven" by Cameron Johnston is a guilty pleasure.  An evil general recruits her six most awful captains, but this time to save a small village?  You know that can't be the only thing going on in this gory, really well paced  dark fantasy novel.   And can I say how great it was that it in fact did not actually follow the "Magick, Dearie"  rule that makes so much grimdark cliche and irritating?   The "Magick Dearie" rule is the way that most grimdark authors leave plenty of magic around,  but its all evil and only the evil can use it or make it happen.   A front without a back,  "Magick always comes with a price, Dearie"  authors have it that no good person, or even a person who wants to do good,  can do magic-- or at least not without paying a horrible price.  So much for altruism, wisdom, or even gods with a sense of humor.   Now in this work, despite so much of the magic being inhuman or inhumane in nature,  it never feels like there is only one side to magic- although we don't see really noble magic users here.  yet this isn't that kind of book. In this book, you are rooting for evil. 

Well, not all the evil-  the book has evil and also eeeeevil.  But there is quick and effective world building,  twists and turns,  solid characters,  and my oh my,  a triple ending that for me was quite satisfying.  So many recent fantasy novels have failed to stick the landing,  but not "The Malificent Seven."  You are welcome to disagree, and perhaps I would have felt differently in past years.  This time,  though,  a gory, messy,  necromancy drenched adventure was a fun read,  delivering all the goods. 

Nine years worth of books? No, but a few worth mentioning.

 Myke Coyle's "Sixteenth Watch" works as well as it does because of characters-  strong, solid characters who breathe and feel and cry and laugh-  and then blow stuff apart in the space around the moon.   For those who normally don't exactly adore millitary or scifi or millitary sci-fi,  this is worth a try.  Recommended at 33 Richmans, for sure. 

Nathan Lowell's "The Wizard's Butler" should not be as pleasant a read as it is.  Some people found it a bit dull,  but most found it wonderful to read.   Sure, there is some magic, but no renevants or undead,   no outworld threats or ancient evil unleashed.    The plot line never resolves one of the issues affecting the main characters.  But as one reviewer noted,  Lowell is writing with such warmth and style that you don't realize you are interested in the story even though you just read a page about getting internet installed in a mansion,  and you want to know what happens next.  No combat,  no really evil people (just greedy) and yet a  stunningly smooth read.   31 our of 40 Richmans-  Recommended indeed. 

So what gets a 42?

I've read it at least 7 times:  Piers Anthony's great fusion of magic, science and supernatural, "On a Pale Horse."  Genre bending,  mixing theology and adventure, there is nothing quite like the story of Zane, the man who became death.   A book you can read over and over and each time find something new about it - or yourself- that gets a 42.  Dune, it goes without saying, is a 42.  Another?  Memory, by Lois Bujold gets the 42,  with her works   A Civil Affair  and Curse of Challion  hot on its heels at 40.

Unincorporated Woman

To keep it short, when it comes to the Kollin's third volume, things seem to drag, and then halfway through you sense "oh crap, this is not the last book in the saga. 22/42 richmans. Epic, lurching. Interesting, but, well, eh.

Here, here, well spoken, Theo.

What a fun and effervescent read! Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos by R. L. LaFevers is a delightful start to a series that will call to young readers who are lovers of Edwardian England- or at least England of yesteryear, Egyptian Mythology, and main characters who very bright, but ignored because they are girls. With just enough action and fighting to bring it to the edge of Young Adult, the book still has a gentle manner about it, shielding the main character- and thus the reader- from too much angst, agony, or aggravation. The heroine may not resonate with everyone, but the book keeps moving at a bold pace, introducing its characters and magical rules as it moves along smoothly. 30 out of 42 Richmans. I'm surprised the Disney Channel has not made it into a series yet.

Fuzzy Apples?

Joe Scalzi's Fuzzy Nation was a book I put down twice. Usually, once I pick up one of his books, I'm glued to it. Perhaps I have been reading a bit less lately, and it wasn't the book. I can't exactly pin down why I felt it dragged at the beginning, perhaps because the main character is a bit of an anti-Hero. But after having made it half-way though, I gave it a third try and was suddenly keen to finish it. It has a rousing finish, with a set of wallops that you expect from Scalzi. You may even think you have one spotted, and you will probably be right- but there's a payoff that will still delight you. 30/42 Richmans. The Land of the Silver Apples is a solid YA Fantasy book, with a rating of 26/42 Richmans. It's not a new classic of YA fantasy, but it has some really delightful aspects that make it worth recommending. I did not read the preceding book in this series, but I'll read the next one. As with a good bit of YA work, characters are not completely developed. But so what? There is humor, the characters do have substance and development, and the world setting is solid. The main character is somewhere between a druid and a wizard in a time when the world was between Christianity and older religions. Nancy Farmer did some delightful work, and a third volume, "The Island of the Blessed" will be on my list. I'll certainly add her to my list of recommended YA authors.

A discovery of chick-lit meets fantasy.

Look, I don' t know what to make exactly of Deborah Harkness' "A Discovery of Witches." Is it a bold mix of standard fantasy tropes (vampires, witches, magic powers) and romance novel cliches? Yes. Does that mean it's nothing more than "Twilight" for grown-ups? I don't think so. But even if that is the case, it is, bear in mind, for grown-ups. There's no sex for grownups- but that is the only area the book is not adult. There is a knowledge of the academic world that sets the story in a decidedly adult world. Can I recommend it strongly? No, but I want to. There is an amazing creativity here and some original stuff. There is a command of history involved here that is delightful. It works well in spite of reading like a romance a bit too often, and being afraid of anything that's more erotic than a kiss with a bit of tongue. Rating: 24 out of 42 Richmans. Recommended but with a bit of hesitation.