Review: Kindle Paperwhite (2nd gen)

Amazon Kindle Paperwhite

For the last year and change, I’ve split my e-reading between my Google Nexus 4 phone and my Google Nexus 7 tablet and while they’re both excellent devices, reading novels on an LCD screen never really sat well with me. Before I go further, I should tell you that I’m not one of those people who refuse to make the shift from paperbacks and hardcovers to e-ink as I’ve previously been the owner of an e-reading device. I used to own a Kobo WiFi but it unfortunately met its untimely demise in the winter of 2012. Since then, I’ve been hemming and hawing over getting back in the e-ink game but for whatever reason, talked myself out of it.

“Why do you need that?”

“You have a tablet - it’s a waste of money.”

..I’m very good at sometimes talking myself out of things.

Hawkeye: My Life As A Weapon

Hawkeye: My Life as a Weapon

Hawkeye: My Life As A Weapon

Matt Fraction

Marvel NOW!

Available now!

When I walked out of the theatre after watching The Avengers last year, I was too blown away by the awesomeness of The Hulk to even remember Jeremy Renner’s performance as Clint Barton (a.k.a.Hawkeye; a.k.a. the guy with the arrows). His role as a member of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes had felt rather diminished and seemed like an afterthought. Hawkeye wasn’t nearly as exciting, memorable or as flashy as Thor, Iron Man or even Agent Colson. So when I heard all the buzz behind Matt Fraction’s take on Earth’s Mightiest Marksman, I had to see this for myself.

Fraction basically approaches Hawkeye by treating him as that outsider, the guy in the Avengers without the mind-blowing super powers. He’s not a God, he’s not a super soldier and he’s certainly not a giant green rage monster – Clint Barton is just an exceptionally skilled archer. How he deals with that fact is the core of this series, his missions seem almost secondary – which I’m completely OK with. Marvel has always been known for its strong character development, trying to make the heroes as relatable as possible in an effort to tie the story to the reader in the most emotional way possible. You could write a story about a hero constantly saving the day, taking out the villains over and over again but in the end, it’s the guy behind the mask that keeps the reader coming back and Fraction gives us that in a strong opening to his new project.

I do have a few small complaints though. I absolutely loved David Aja’s work in the first three issues, giving it a style reminiscent of Sean Phillips (one of my favorites). What confused me was the sudden shift to Javier Pulido for issues four and five. Pulido isn’t bad per se, it just made me wonder where Aja went. The final chapter, which is an issue of Young Avengers Presents, seemed tacked on to pad out the book.

I’m interested to see where things go from here. Bring on Volume Two!

A Double Shot of Deadpool!

Deadpool: Dead Presidents

Deadpool: Dead Presidents
Marvel NOW!
Available Now!

Deceased US presidents have been resurrected and are wreaking havoc.  To protect their image, S.H.E.I.L.D. refuses to dispatch The Avengers.  I mean, can you blame them?  You can’t have Captain America running around lopping off the heads of George Washington, Abe Lincoln and John F. Kennedy – what a P.R. nightmare!  As a last resort, they look to someone who could care less about their public image; Deadpool!  Can Deadpool defeat the former heads of state before America falls?


Brian Posehn and Gerry Duggan bring the funny as the new head writers for the Marvel Now Deadpool series.  When I say be brings the funny, I mean it.  This trade was damn hilarious.  Just picture Deadpool battling the likes of Ronald Reagan, FDR and William Taft – who travels in a flying bathtub – while cracking some pretty hilarious one-liners and various witty remarks.  The story flows well and while the humor is the central focus, it doesn’t distract from the overall story.

I should also point out that Tony Moore’s artwork is perfect for the series.  It gives off a cartoony vibe to match the humor while also holding up strong for the intense violent scenes.  I can’t wait to read the next collection!

Forget that Daniel Day Lewis movie or that other flick where Honest Abe hunts vampires – this is Lincoln’s finest 2012 appearance!

Deadpool: Soul Hunter

Deadpool: Soul Hunter

Marvel NOW!

Available Now!

Selling your soul to a demon rarely has a favorable outcome. Sure, you’ll get what you need up-front but the poor saps that complete the transaction are usually only equipped with tunnel vision. They can’t see the bigger picture, the potential repercussions of their choice. That being said, I’m sure they didn’t expect to be hunted down by The Merc with a Mouth himself, Deadpool.

Vetis, the demon in question, has been spreading his powers among a select few individuals. When the time comes for him to call in his loans, he hires Deadpool to bring about their demise. Hunting them down one by one, Deadpool encounters several adversaries along the way and it’s not long before he’s at odds with Spider-Man and Daredevil.

But first, before all that stuff, we get a single issue blast from the past that takes Deadpool back to 1979 in a one-off adventure with Iron Man. Don’t let something as trivial as Deadpool not being created until 1991 get in the way of the storytelling – it’s really funny stuff. In this tale, Vetis encounters Deadpool for the first time, asking him to keep Tony Stark off the wagon. Deadpool finds a pretty brilliant way around his mission that’ll have readers laughing.

I’ve become a huge fan of Deadpool and Brian Posehn and Gerry Duggan’s current run with the character is downright awesome. The character itself relies heavily on dark humor and a plethora of pop culture references so it’s easy to sometimes view the writers as “trying too hard”. That being said, you never feel that with these two. They seem to have a tight grasp on what works with The Crimson Nutcase.

I can’t recommend this series enough. I’ve been reading the trades but I may have to switch to the monthlies. My only real complaint would be his mental merger with S.H.E.I.L.D agent Preston. While it does have its moments, it often feels a little tacky and unnecessary. However, I’m pretty happy that the ghost of Benjamin Franklin appears to be a series regular.

A Double Dose of Chris F. Holm's Short Fiction

8 Pounds: Eight Tales of Crime, Horror & Suspense
Chris F. Holm
Poisonville Press
Available Now! (Kindle Exclusive)

In 8 Pounds, author Chris F. Holm presents us with eight tales of crime, horror and suspense.  The stories themselves provide glimpses into selfishness, self-preservation, betrayal and straight up horror.

“On the first day, nobody paid it no mind.  Sure, the power flickered and the gutters overflowed, but most just figured it’d blow over by daybreak.

On the second day, the river swelled.  Folks took off work to haul sandbags to the riverbanks, hoping to keep the rising waters at bay.  They worked for hours in the wind and wet, and in the end, that river breached its banks and sent ‘em running.

On the third day, they found the body.”

Look, if that doesn't grab you right away, I don’t know what will.  The collection starts off strong with Seven Days of Rain, a story about guilt and doing what’s right despite your own best interests.

While I wasn't a huge fan of the follow-up, A Better Life, Holmes hits us with a thriller in the third story about a woman on the run and an unsuspecting good Samaritan caught up in her circumstances with A Simple Act of Kindness.

The book moves along smoothly with the pulse pounding Eight Pounds.  Holm turns the suspense up to eleven as two best friends share drinks at a pub – one harboring a secret from the other.  The tension rises when the guilty party suspects he’s been outed leading to a memorable conclusion.

He snorted, took a drink.  ”We’re all of us the killing kind,” he said.  ”With the proper motivation, any one of us is capable of just about anything.  Murder. Theft. Betrayal.  But then you of all people should know that.”

Aside from the very short The Well, the collection finishes up with a classic crime caper in The Big Score and a coming of age story in The World Behind.  While I felt The Well seemed out of place and had a bit of a puzzling ending, the two stories that followed finished strong.  The Big Score kept me guessing right until the very end while The World Behind tugged on the ol’ heartstrings.

Overall, while I felt it was not as strong as its stellar successor, Dead Letters, 8 Pounds is a good collection of varied stories from a great author.  Given its bargain price on Amazon right now – you should give it a read.

Dead Letters: Stories of Murder & Mayhem

Chris F. Holm

Poisonville Press

Available Now! (Kindle Exclusive)

I think I’m finally starting to come around on short story collections. While I’ve read a few that I couldn’t quite get behind, the ones that I’m enjoying are seemingly outnumbering the ones I don’t. I was a big fan of John Connolly’s Nocturnes as well as Stephen King’s Full Dark, No Stars and now you can add Chris F. Holm’s Dead Letters to that exclusive club.

There’s a lot to like about this collection. While most of them were enjoyable, a select few completely blew me away. My favorite of the bunch involved a couple moving into a home believed to previously have been inhabited by a famous writer from Maine. Without giving anything away, Holm crafted an ending that gave me chills the likes of which I cannot recall. In addition to that, there’s a fantastic story involving a murder mystery featuring the characters from Rankin Bass’ Rudolph The Rednose Reindeer. Holm had me laughing out loud injecting these G-Rated personalities into a noir-style setting.

A few other great ones include “Action”, a hilarious bank robbery involving pretentious artists that goes awry, “A Native Problem”, a downright chilling tale involving cannibalism (or zombies) and “The Man With The Alligator Shoes”, a story that seems to mirror the frustration following the 2008 market crash.

Oh, and it would be a crime not to mention the story that kicks things off. ”The Putdown” was certainly interesting enough given the style in which Chris chose to narrate the story. For someone not from the south, writing in a southern twang had to have been challenging. However, it was the ending that gripped me. I knew after finishing that solid opener, I had some interesting stuff ahead of me.

At the risk of sounding like a fanboy, I can’t get enough of Mr. Holm’s work. Between his Collector series and now this short story collection, he’s an author that everyone should be looking out for in the coming years. Now, time to get 8 Pounds.

A Double Shot of Hinkson.

Hell on Church Street

Jake Hinkson

New Pulp Press

Available Now!

While leaving a corner store and getting into his vehicle, Geoffrey Webb is shocked to see a man sitting in the passenger seat brandishing a hand gun. The would-be attacker demands Webb’s money but rather than going along with it, Webb decides to take the offensive. He doesn’t attack his assailant but rather chooses to go on a long drive and recount his days as a youth minister of a small Arkansas town. Threatening to crash the car if the crook doesn’t listen, Webb is finally able to clear the air surrounding his time in the cloth.

This is one hell of a debut novel (pardon the pun), let me tell you. Jake Hinkson has unleashed a story that will stick with me for years to come. I was so engrossed in the story, that I lost sleep after I finished it. I couldn’t help thinking about the way Hinkson writes violence – it was just so damn raw. Hey, I can’t speak to the authenticity of a murder scene but I truly felt right there in the room when it was happening. You know that feeling when you’re watching a horror movie and the cheerleader is about to walk into a room and even though you can’t communicate with her, you just want to will her not to do it. Hinkson takes that feeling and dials it up to eleven.

“Then again, the third fundamental truth of life is this: to 99.9% of the world you don’t exist. I’m not being self-pitying when I say that because I’m talking about you. You do not exist to most of the rest of the world. How many people even know you’re alive? Of those, how many care? Don’t add it up if you’re the type that gets easily depressed.”

I shouldn’t throw all the praise on the suspenseful or violent scenes as there’s lots in here to shed a spotlight on. Webb wasn’t exactly interested in being a youth minister, as at heart, he’s a con-man. He looked at a career in religion as being a job where you can get the most out of doing the least amount of work. Our narrator is a cynical man believing that people only want to talk to someone who shares their prejudices or someone who is going to tell them exactly what they want to hear, he thinks he has it all figured out and truthfully, he does, until everything goes awry.

“There’s a level of trouble you can’t talk your way out of,” he said. “Some trouble is like a cancer. It just grows inside you. Nothing stops it. It just keeps growing and growing, eating everything it touches.”

While he’s excellent at deceiving those around him, Webb soon learns how hard it is to perform damage control. Getting his roots into the community and becoming the mindless, suck-up that everyone loves happens quicker than walking up an escalator, the true talent comes in keeping up the act when something outside of his plan materializes. For this, all that is needed is one person to doubt his sincerity, to see him for who he truly is, to drive him mad in an attempt to keep everything together. There’s nothing a con-man can’t stand more than someone who is immune to his charm. Webb’s interactions with those who see through him are intense and add so much to his character.

Hell on Church Street is the second novel I’ve read from publisher New Pulp Press. If both this novel and Matthew McBride’s Frank Sinatra in a Blender are any sign of the quality of work this company is putting forth, I need to get some more of it.

The Posthumous Man

Jake Hinkson

Beat To A Pulp

Available Now!

Elliot Spilling wakes up in a hospital to discover he succeeded in killing himself. Well, for three minutes anyway. A chance encounter with a nurse leads to Elliot injecting himself into a plan to steal millions in drugs from a hospital shipment. Will Elliot and his new found associates reap the rewards of a successful plan or will everything come crashing down around them?

Having just finished Jake Hinkson’s first novel, Hell on Church Street, I was hungry for more. Luckily for me, I didn’t have to wait. For a criminally low price, Hinkson’s follow-up The Posthumous Man is available as an e-book on the Kindle Store. Coming in at a brisk 148 pages, Hinkson takes us to a small town in Arkansas shortly before a gang of wannabe heisters steal a load of Oxy to earn a cool two million dollars. Comprised of a bankrupt businessman, a cop and his twin brother, a nurse and a man recovering from a failed suicide attempt, there’s no way the plan can fail!

In an attempt to avoid spoilers – and believe me, with the way this novel turns out, the less you know the better – I’ll leave it at that. Hinkson uses his talent for creating likable scumbag characters by throwing out this rag-tag collection of losers you can’t help but root for. Even when everything is falling apart, you’ll still pulling for a victory.

Just like with Hell on Church Street, the violence is swift and coarse. There’s no sugar coating anything here – Hinkson rips open a wound and forces you to look at it. It’s good to know that after reading crime fiction for all these years, there are still authors out there that can shock me with a certain way of writing brutality.

If you’re looking for a rapid read that’s hard to put down, look no further than Hinkson’s The Posthumous Man.

The Wanderer in Unknown Realms

The Wanderer in Unknown Realms

The Wanderer in Unknown Realms

John Connolly

Atria/Emily Bestler Books

Available: Now!

Soter, a former British soldier turned private detective, is charged with investigating the sudden disappearance of wealthy recluse and obsessive book collector Lionel Maudling. Soter’s boss, the wealthy bookkeeper of the missing man in question, urges the utmost discretion in the search for Mr. Maudling’s whereabouts. Can Soter find Maudling before the trail runs cold or will an unknown presence jeopardize Soter’s already fragile state of mind?

Connolly does a great job here working within the constraints of a novella. That being said, this could easily be expanded into a fully fleshed out novel. Both the characters and plot are very strong and it’s a shame that we only get to spend such a short amount of time in this world. However, I feel like that’s kind of an unfair criticism and that the book should be judged purely on what it is – a quick read that packs an emotional punch.

Connolly’s protagonist, Soter, is a fascinating character. Shell-shocked from his time spent fighting in the first World War, Soter has little to offer anyone other than his employer, Quayle, who uses Soter from time to time in dealing with clients who find themselves in less than desirable positions. While he’s not outwardly downtrodden, he certainly has strong opinions on those who did not serve alongside him but rather hold judgement against those who had.

The hatred for ex-soldiers on the part of those who had not fought was something I could not understand. They wanted us to disappear. There were no more parades now, no more kisses on the cheek. Soldiers were no more than beggars, and nobody likes a beggar. Perhaps we made them feel guilty by our presence. They might have preferred it had we all died in the mud and been buried far from England in places whose names we had not even learned to pronounce properly before we perished.

Just like in his Samuel Johnson novels, the prose differs from his trademark Charlie Parker series but still retains that trademark wit and supernatural style. While it does come across as something fresh and outside his comfort zone, it still reads like a Connolly novel. There are also a few illustrations injected between select chapters from artist Emily Hall, giving it that extra bit of creepiness.

I can see a lot of people having issues with the ending but I loved it. I’m not going to tread into spoiler territory here but let’s just say that Connolly leaves it very open ended.

Cross Posted @ Every Read Thing

The Other Parker

The man himself.

John Connolly’s Parker series is directly responsible for me becoming a constant reader.

In the fall of 2008, I had been looking for something new to read. I was searching for something outside of my steady diet of pro-wrestling biographies. I posed a question in an online forum and the first thing that came back was John Connolly’s Every Dead Thing. I thought the title sounded cool enough and a mass market paperback was available for under $10. Sold! I didn’t realize at the time that when I cracked the cover to Connolly’s debut novel, that it would lead me to a new passion that would eventually monopolize much of my free time.

The Big Reap

Chris F. Holm's The Big Reap

The Big Reap
Chris F. Holm
Angry Robot Books
Available July 30th (North America) August 01st (UK)

Still reeling from the effects of The Wrong Goodbye, Sam Thornton is tasked by his handler Lilith to take out the mysterious Brethren, a group made up of former Collectors who have severed their ties with Hell.

I received an ARC of The Big Reap from Angry Robot in exchange for a fair review. Thanks to our literary robot overlords!

The opening scene of The Big Reap will have a spot among my favorite openers ever. Not only does Chris bring you up to speed if this happens to be your first Thornton novel (and seriously, who starts on the third book of any series - go read those first two!), he also takes us back and tells the story of Sam’s first collection. That particular story is told over the course of the novel as Chris presents it side-by-side with Thornton’s crusade against the forces of the Brethren. Both stories are equally compelling so when he switches back and forth, you’re not exactly dying to get back to the other.

Like the first two novels, Holm continues with his excellently choreographed action scenes. There’s some high octane stuff here involving Thornton having to use his environment to gain advantages. It’s a wonder how Holm can make the character so damn confident when he always seems to just barely come out on top. Sam never seems to have a solid game plan and often relies on thinking in the moment – something that keeps the action moving swiftly with consistently unpredictable results. All of these factors leave us with a story that is a real blast to read.

Sam is quickly becoming one of my favorite characters. While he carries with him the attitude of a blockbuster movie action star, he’s also a tragic character at heart. As his journey progresses, he realizes just how hopeless his future really is. It would be easy for Holm to give us a character with big bravado who constantly comes out on top but instead gives us a character that learns, develops and grows with each story. He's like John McClane from the first Die Hard movie – not the John McClane that developed over time and became an indestructible superman.

In my opinion, this is Holm's finest work yet. Taking nothing away from the first two books in the series, The Big Reap has raised the bar for any potential sequels.

Meet The Shelf Inflicted Staff - Brandon

Today's guest is the bearded beast from the east.. of Canada, Brandon!

How did you discover Goodreads?

I was looking around online for a website that I could use as a database for my books.  I stumbled across Library Thing and toyed around with that for a few weeks before finding my way over to Goodreads.

What have been your most memorable Goodreads experience?

I can't really think of anything specific but I can say that if not for Goodreads, I wouldn't have been able to discover a lot of the books and authors that I've had the pleasure of reading.  It also gave me the confidence to start my own book blog after I've been voted into the Top 20 "best" book reviewers in the great nation of Canada.

Name one reviewer not in the Forbes 25 that people should be aware of.

The first name that comes to mind is Aerin.  She wrote a review for Mark Z. Danielewski's House of Leaves that totally blew me away.  I've been following her for a while and she's a fantastic writer!

What was your initial reaction to Amazon buying Goodreads?

I was worried at first.  There wasn't a specific change that I was fearing but just the fact that the overall vibe of the site could drastically change worried me.  Goodreads has become an online home of mine and I've grown to love it.  I hope they institute a hands-off approach to the site and allow it to operate in it's own fashion.

How many books do you own?

Surprisingly, not that many.  I've got one book shelf filled with what I consider my absolute favorites.  Most of what I read now seems to be an e-book or something I grab from the library.  Considering that there's so much out there to read, I want to be more selective on what I buy judging by whether or not I can imagine reading it again.

Who is your favorite author?

This honestly changes a lot.  However, I have no reservations in naming John Connolly.  His Charlie Parker series opened a lot of doors for me in terms of crime fiction.  If not for him, I wouldn't have searched out authors like Lawrence Block or Raymond Chandler.  There's also Stephen King.  He's easily the author I've read the most and I've still got lots of his work to consume.

What is your favorite book of all time?

In the past 3 years, nothing has been able to knock The Stand off of its perch - though many have come close.  It was a book that I was intimidated by in its size but when I turned the last page, I wanted more.  Luckily for me, there's a Marvel series and some further mentions/visits in the King universe.

What are your thoughts on ebooks?

I love ebooks!  I was resistant at first because I was a big fan of holding an actual book.  When I received my first e-reader 3 years ago, I took to it pretty quickly.  However, over time, I've split my reading between the two formats.  Since starting my blog, a lot of authors/publishers have been able to send me their book through email rather than mailing me a physical copy.

What are your thoughts on self-publishing?

I think there's a stigma associated with it just for the fact that many seem to avoid the editing process.  I can't say for certain if I have an opinion on it but I did read a self-published book a few weeks ago and rather enjoyed it.  On the other hand, I'm a blogger - would I expect people to avoid reading my thoughts because it's not appearing in a magazine or major website?  I can certainly see the reasons behind it.

Any literary aspirations?

I'm actually working on something at the moment.  Who knows if it will ever become anything but I'm certainly enjoying myself.  It's something that I've wanted to do for a few years so taking the plunge and giving it an honest shot is something that I need to do for myself.

Will Christopher Baer's Phineas Poe Trilogy.

Two of my more recent posts on Shelf Inflicted have been spotlights thrown on an author's series.  I took a look at a few Duane Swierczynski books and then just two weeks ago, posted my thoughts on Chris F. Holm's Collector books.

I thought this week I'd throw up three books from author Will Christopher Baer.  An incredibly underrated and criminally unknown neo-noir series about an unwilling hero and a deadly woman.  Check it out my thoughts after the jump.

Unlocking Locke & Key

When you mention comic books to the average person, the first thing that will most likely come to mind are “superheroes”. And honestly, would you expect anything else? In the last ten to twelve years, superhero movies have flat out dominated the box office setting and subsequently broken record after record. In fact, Iron Man 3, just recently surpassed $1.1 BILLION in ticket sales worldwide. That’s billion with a b - just to clarify any suspicion of typos. The other four films taking the spots above Iron Man 3 are Avatar, Titanic, The Avengers and Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows Part 2. Not bad that two of the top five grossing films of all time can find their roots within comics.

The Blue Blazes

Chuck Wendig's The Blue Blazes

The Blue Blazes
Chuck Wendig
Angry Robot Books
Available May 28th, 2013

Have you ever walked into a party and seen someone just command everyone’s attention? Maybe they’re telling a joke, a captivating story or performing some ridiculous feat, you’re not sure. You lean over and ask someone what’s going on. They either shush you or they calmly say, “Oh, that’s just <insert name here>, he’s/she’s awesome.”  That’s Chuck Wendig.

Chuck is that guy that everyone is talking about that somehow you don’t know. He’s been building his reputation over the years with some critically acclaimed work but unfortunately, I’ve had my blinders on preferring to narrow my reading material to a select few genres and authors. It wasn’t until this year that I’ve really started to broaden my horizons and Chuck Wendig is one of my latest discoveries.

I first stumbled across Chuck when I was prepping for an interview with Adam Christopher. I wanted to avoid asking Adam anything that he’d already been asked a thousand times (a difficult task) when I came across an interview he did with the website, Terrible Minds. Terrible Minds is a blog created by Mr. Wendig where he interviews other authors and muses about anything that crosses his mind. Not only did I become a fan, I saw that he was also an author. Not only is he an author but an author that had a book scheduled to be released by Angry Robot – a publisher that I’ve become enthralled with over the past few months. When I saw that the ARC (advanced reader copy) became available, I snagged it as quickly as possible.

The Blue Blazes is an urban fantasy tale that mixes the criminal underworld with the spiritual underworld. When combined, it produces a hard hitting and brutal exercise in awesome. Mookie Pearl works for The Organization, a gang that holds great power and influence over the majority of the organized crime within New York City. When its leader becomes stricken with terminal cancer, Mookie is sent to retrieve a cure that may or may not even exist. The prospect of traveling within the local underworld is not something Mookie is looking forward to but seeing as his loyalty is unwavering, he sees no other option.

In mixing the surface dwellers with the underground, the underground have an advantage in assuming a physical appearance akin to ours. The only way to see them for who they really are is to smear a clay like substance often dubbed, “Peacock Powder” on each of their temples (think Roddy Piper’s shades in They Live!). As the novel progresses, Mookie hears of another drug similar to the blue called “The Red”, in which an acquaintance explains:

“..that shit’s like bath salts had a baby with steroids or something, man. Makes you go crazy. He went nuts. Tore up his mother’s house. Ate her dog.”

The underworld is filled with these select pigmentations that can alter one’s perception, strength or even cure diseases. The one Mookie is after is labeled Death’s Head, or sometimes known as “The Purple”. Long considered to be an urban legend, Death’s Head is believed to cure the incurable and bring those back to life that had passed on.

Not only does Mookie have a hell of a challenge ahead of him (mind the pun) but he also has to deal with his rebellious daughter, Nora. Nora was more than a little tired of living in her father’s shadow and playing a background character to his duties with the mob. So she chose to hit him where it hurts, his father figure boss. Despite his frustration following her actions, his love for her never falls to the wayside. Given his career choice, what option did he have? In order to function like the hard-ass that he was, he had to push his family to the back burner.

“Mookie’s not a man given over to much guilt. In his line of work, guilt is a boat anchor around the ankle, a too-full colostomy bag hanging from the hip. It’s a burden. A does-nothing-for-you-but-slow-your-ass-down burden. Guilt will make you hesitate. Shame makes you weak. And Mookie’s tough. Tough like an anvil.”

Chuck’s got some excellent writing chops. Like the above, there are more than a few lines that had me laughing out loud. Aside from both the action and intensity that Chuck writes with, he isn't above throwing in some abrasive comedy to boot.

“He wants to know who did this. So he can break a baseball bat off in their bowels”

“..And it’s then and there that Mookie decides he’s going to steal a fucking city bus and hit the Holland Tunnel and find this guy’s house and drive the bus over his head”.

I was seriously hooked on this. The Blue Blazes feels like it should exist in the same realm as Frank Miller’s Sin City, both have lovable oafs in Mookie Pearl and Marv respectively and a similar level of extremely stylized violence. Wendig crafted a world here that could produce an endless number of stories. Possibly a prequel or spin-off in regards to the brief introductions for each chapter from an early underworld explorer attempting to map out its environment.

It should be worth noting that Angry Robot is kicking out some fantastic cover art and The Blue Blazes is no exception. Working with Joey Hi-Fi, the same artist as his previous novels, Chuck has some great eye-grabbing artwork to grace the cover. The smaller shot I have at the top of this review seriously does not do it justice. Head over to Terrible Minds to see a hi-res shot.

I’ll be checking out some more Wendig going forward. His Miriam Black series has received a great deal of praise and I doubt it’ll be long before I catch up.

A Duane Swierczynski Triple Bill!

Good evening folks!

Good 'ol bearded Brandon here with a triple header of reviews for you on this lovely Saturday night.  Seeing as there isn't hockey to occupy my attention, I thought I would give you an action packed post all regarding books featuring hooligans mucking it up on the Streets of Philadelphia.  (**Editors Note** not one of these characters will be portrayed by Tom Hanks, Denzel Washington or Bruce Springsteen)

If you ever find yourself over on my blog - Every Read Thing [cheap plug] - you'll know that I'm a pretty big fan of one, Duane Swierczynski.  Swierczynski is one of those authors who does not appear to be happy when confined in one specific story telling medium.  He's both a fiction and non-fiction writer who has also tried his hand at comic books.  Tonight however, I'm going to give you three reviews for three of his pulp style novels.  While they're not officially connected within a series, there are a few characters that find themselves carrying over into each novel.

Hell & Gone (Charlie Hardie #2)

Hell & Gone
Duane Swierczynski
Available Now!

Picking up directly after the events of Fun and Games, we find Charlie Hardie in the clutches of The Industry or The Accident People or Secret America, or whatever you want to call them. While Hardie’s former colleague is on the lookout for him, finding him proves difficult. “They” don’t screw around when they have a task to accomplish and burying the whereabouts of Hardie is their number one objective.

Upon awakening, Hardie finds himself deep underground in a prison somewhere on Earth. I know that’s a little vague but Hardie knows next to nothing about where he is, what day it is or even what the time is so he’s more than slightly lost. Charged with the task of running the prison as Warden, Charlie is responsible for detaining prisoners with backgrounds so devious, neither himself nor his staff are to be told why they’re there. The punishment for not playing along? His family’s safety is on the line.

I’m really digging this series although I have to admit, it took me a while to really get behind this book. I feel like Swierczynski had a lot to live up to after the events of Fun and Games and while it took a bit to get going, he finished very, very strong. A few of the confrontations near the end came across as both intense and hilarious, especially his dialogue (view spoiler).

I seriously have no idea where Swierczynski is going from here. The final pages present a scenario so ridiculous that I can’t help but be interested. It’s unfortunate that there appears to be a delay in it’s release but I’m really looking forward to getting my hands on it.

Also posted @ Every Read Thing.

Fun & Games (Charlie Hardie #1)

Swierczynski's Fun & Games

Fun & Games (Charlie Hardie #1)
Duane Swierczynski
Mulholland Books, 2011

Charlie Hardie is a former under-the-table employee of the Philly police force before an incident altered his life and forced a drastic career change. Charlie is now a house sitter who agrees to sit on your couch, down beers and watch old movies why you’re off having a life somewhere else. Hardie takes a job watching a home when upon arrival, he’s attacked by well known actress/socialite, Lane Madden.

Madden is spouting off conspiracy theories about “them”, an unknown group dubbed, “The Accident People” who eliminate higher-ups while constructing detailed alibis that make death appear accidental and plausible. The planned killing of Madden threw a wrench in their mission and now she’s on the run and inadvertently dragged Charlie into the situation. Can Charlie escape with his life or is he doomed to suffer Madden’s fate as well?

I really, really like Duane Swierczynski and he’s quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. His work is so gripping that he never fails to keep me interested throughout any of his novels.

I’m not sure what he has in store for the next two Hardie stories but I really feel like this was strong enough to stand on it’s own. Hopefully he always had a trilogy in mind and based on the release/publication dates of the remaining installments, I assume that was always the case.

While Hardie himself can seem sort of bland at times, the “Unkillable Chuck” angle that Swierczynski attaches to him creates a nice level of intrigue as well as making me want to know more about his past. Hopefully we’ll know more about him as the books move forward.

Also posted @ Every Read Thing

The Book of Lost Things

The Book of Lost Things

The Book of Lost Things
John Connolly
Atria (2006)
Available Now

John Connolly released only his 2nd book not related to his franchise character, Charlie Parker, with “The Book Of Lost Things”. Connolly’s story begins during World War II, where the main character, David, has moved to the childhood home of his new stepmother to escape the possibility of a German occupation in London. David’s mother had passed away a few years earlier due to a terminal disease and he had never really found a way to cope with it, shouldering most of the blame and rejecting his father’s new wife because of it.  His inability to cope have resulted in David taking frequent panic attacks and passing out for extended periods of time. His parents begin to worry when David claims that the books in his bedroom have begun to talk to him, whispering to him from time to time.

One evening, after an argument with his step mother, David wanders out to his backyard claiming he’s hearing calls for help from his mother. He crawls through a space in the fence somehow transporting him into a world similar to his favorite fairy tales.

Now, I know this sounds pretty childish but it really isn’t. “The Book Of Lost Things” can at times be extremely violent as Connolly seems to enjoy twisting and taking apart various fairy tales.  Snow White, for example, never meets her prince. Instead, she over-eats and forces the seven dwarfs into slave labor for the rest of their lives to support her. This leaves the dwarfs constantly trying to find a way to kill her in order to be free.

Connolly puts his own spin on several other classic tales coming away with something fresh and memorable. He develops a great antagonist with the book’s main villain, “The Crooked Man”. In the end, he is an extremely desperate and vengeful character who is fully realized and spiteful.  In fact, his speech to David near the book’s conclusion is something to watch for. Quite possibly one of my favorite literary villains to date.

This was the first Connolly book I’d read and after reading almost everything else he has to offer, it remains near the top of my favorites.  I’d recommend it to just about anyone.

Also posted on Every Read Thing

Kasher In The Rye

Kasher in the Rye

Moshe Kasher

Reviewed by: Brandon

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars.

I only really know Moshe Kasher from the two times I've heard him as a guest on Stop Podcasting Yourself, an excellent podcast from Vancouver based comedians Graham Clark and Dave Shumka. His appearances were pretty funny, the guy has a quick wit and an interesting sense of humor.

On his most recent two appearances, he talked about writing a book that detailed his pretty sordid past involving drugs and mental health. Having gone through so much before his sixteenth birthday, there was no way this book could be anything but enthralling.

I certainly wasn't wrong.

It can be jarring listening (snagged a copy of the audio book) to Moshe explain how one drug led to another and how serious his addictions became. The combination of drugs that he had been taking at one point was mind boggling, it’s unbelievable just how much memory he retained. When you add a vicious and unforgiving attitude toward any authority figure as well as his mother, it’s a wonder he came out the other end with such a positive attitude and achieved this level of success and comfort.

Oh, and this book is really funny. Kasher is now a stand-up comedian and part time actor so he knows how to entertain. While he’s regaling you with stories of his troubled youth, he keeps certain topics light by infusing his unique sense of humor  It takes a special kind of person to make you laugh while trying to justify being too lazy to walk the ten feet to the bathroom, electing rather to piss in empty soft drink cups and cast iron heaters.

Also posted on Every Read Thing