Hey!! Let's get some action going! What are we reading?

[Rev. Bob]

Originally Posted by Dngrsone

Armageddon Girl by C.J. Carella, apparently another superhero-type book (apparently that's a going thing, now) The main character is a geeked out college girl with none of the looks and most of the awkwardness.

Funny, that's one of my very recent acquisitions. Please let me know what you think.

[ATDrake]

Originally Posted by CRussel

Next up, the first of the Jade del Cameron series recommended by ATDrake: Suzanne Arruda's Mark of the Lion. This has been on my Amazon wishlist for a while, and I succumbed yesterday and bought it. Like I didn't have enough to read already.

Is this a bad time to remind you that the newest Ava Lee adventure by Ian Hamilton, The Prince of Nanjing, is now out and couponable at Kobo (if they fix the Canadian contest codes)?

Anyway, I hope you enjoy the Jade del Cameron series. IIRC, the first book is a bit shaky and finding-its-ground (I myself got introduced to them via the 2nd, which was featured on the library's bookshelves as some sort of theme week promo), but it's pretty solid from then on.

As for me, had another batch of books to return to the library, of which I'd been reading Danish author Jussi Adler-Olsen's Department Q series starring a cold case police division in Copenhagen.

I'd previously bought the 1st-in-series in French when it was a Kobo Canada Daily Deal (and the 2nd-in-series French translation is also on sale for this month at roughly half-off the regular price) and thought it might be one of my experimental English/French tandem reads back when I thought I'd be feeling well enough to have time for that. But after the first, I just ended up mainlining the entire series in English to date.

It's the usual sort of Nordic Noir setup, ostensibly starring the typical grumpy curmudgeonly Danish detective With Issues, Carl Mørck, who's recovering from a traumatic cop experience which got him reshuffled to lighter duties, in between juggling a complex home situation which includes his surly teenaged former stepson living with him in preference to said stepson's actual mother, his estranged not-quite-ex-wife. This particular variant is distinguished by its supporting characters, which include his main assistant the Syrian refugee Assad, who's a hypercompetent Funny Foreigner with disturbing skills and possibly a background more sinister than it seems, and other assistant eccentric Rose, who's also very competent, but has some rather unusual issues going on herself.

Despite the cold case nature of the stories which revisit unsolved old stuff, there tends to be a parallel throughout the books of old crimes in the past being reflected in current crimes in the present (which may or may not be related). And there's an ongoing subplot thread of finding out just what happened in the case that got Mørck decomissioned from regular duty while killing one of his cop partners and crippling the other, slowly unraveling clues to that over the course of the books as well as the gradual recovery of the surviving partner over the years.

Overall, they're pretty good books and it's easy to see why they're popular bestsellers in many languages and have a planned series of film adaptations. Adler-Olsen does have a tendency to go for the twistiest plot twist he can apply, so the question is not so much "whodunnit?" as "who will have appeared to have dunnit but actually turn out to have been manipulated/framed by someone else who dunnit or have less culpability in dunning it than originally thought and be innocent of part of having dunnit while being unexpectedly guilty of something else?" But it generally works out in most cases, even if sometimes the surprise seems a little contrived. Also, oddly elaborate revenge schemes which seem like one would get bored with performing them halfway through.

All the books in the series are fairly good, though some seem noticeably better than others (and for bizarre marketing reasons, have different titles in the UK and North American translations up to a certain point):

1. The Keeper of Lost Causes aka Mercy, a pretty interesting cold case which involves a mysteriously-disappeared politician and clues held in the mind of her mentally-disabled brother, though the eventually-revealed motivation and diabolical plan seemed a little over the top. But it was the a debut novel, so…
2. The Absent One aka Disgrace, a somewhat refreshing but disturbing look at overprivileged rich kid bullies continuing their destructive courses through life (without horrible tragic backstories to excuse their evildoing) and the attempt to pin something on them.
3. A Conspiracy of Faith aka Redemption, a kind of meh religion-obsessed serial killer that's mostly interesting for the portrayal of strong publicly-performed faith beliefs in the generally more secular and religiously-private Scandinavian countries. IMHO, Norwegian Jo Nesbø's The Redeemers in his Harry Hole series set in Oslo is a better murder mystery centred around a group of hardcore believers.
4. The Purity of Vengeance aka Guilt, perhaps the best of the lot thus far, with a twisty revenge scheme carried out cleverly, and a plot twist that works pretty well, as well as a look at the Danish equivalent of Ireland's infamous Magdalene Laundries. If you pick just one to try reading, this should probably be it.
5. The Marco Effect, another one of the somewhat meh ones, but interesting for its depiction of Denmark's involvement in foreign aid and attitudes toward foreigners, partly told from the viewpoint of a runaway Roma boy in hiding after having uncovered evidence of an old crime which makes his guilty clan put out a hit on him.
6. The Hanging Girl, a middling one which is interesting in trying to track down clues for a case that was long ago dismissed as a mere accident, so that they can prove that it was actually murder. But interspliced with some sort of modern New Age endeavour which seems to be rather superfluous at first, but does eventually connect with some stuff that's going on with Mørck and the others. Interesting concept and good twists, but the execution of the storytelling could have been better.

Overall, medium-firm recommend if you like international crime series which deal with solving old cases (while maybe creating new ones in the process), and have some twisty plots and eccentric characters in them. The actual cases are pretty much standalone, and the personal developments are gradual and mostly backgrounded enough that you can probably read these out of order if you don't mind not seeing them revealed exactly as they develop.

[CRussel]

Originally Posted by ATDrake

Is this a bad time to remind you that the newest Ava Lee adventure by Ian Hamilton, The Prince of Nanjing, is now out and couponable at Kobo (if they fix the Canadian contest codes)?

Anyway, I hope you enjoy the Jade del Cameron series. IIRC, the first book is a bit shaky and finding-its-ground (I myself got introduced to them via the 2nd, which was featured on the library's bookshelves as some sort of theme week promo), but it's pretty solid from then on.

Darn you, ATDrake! I'm already over budget this month!

(Charlie heads off to look up the latest codes from the Kobo thread, cause full price isn't on my list of desirables. And I can't imagine waiting for the library to have it!!!)

[CRussel]

Originally Posted by CRussel

Darn you, ATDrake! I'm already over budget this month!

(Charlie heads off to look up the latest codes from the Kobo thread, cause full price isn't on my list of desirables. And I can't imagine waiting for the library to have it!!!)

Grrrr. Apparently they haven't fixed the Canadian codes issues. Good, I can wait a couple of days.

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by Dngrsone

Amazon US has three volumes in ebook form for $2.99 each.

I picked them up when they were $0.99 each back in December.

Not at all the Prescription Murder I had in mind. I was thinking of the stage play by William Link and Richard Levinson that was later adapted to television and introduced to the world the police lieutenant known as Columbo. Amazon has that one in paperback, but it costs $9.95 and can take up to a month to ship.

http://www.amazon.com/Prescription-M.../dp/0573614245

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Next up: Valour's Choice by Tanya Huff. The first in a series, and my first from this author. Mil SF.

Well, it was fairly good MilSF. But elven-like aliens who are sexually compatible and attractive to and attracted by humans? A bit of a stretch.

Next up: A Symphony of Echoes by Jodi Taylor. The second in this time travelling story. And getting worse rather than better. I'll finish this one, but I'm not happy with the thought (or lack of thought) in the time travel elements, and the organisational setup is even more unbelievable than the time travel.

[CRussel]

Originally Posted by CRussel

Darn you, ATDrake! I'm already over budget this month!

(Charlie heads off to look up the latest codes from the Kobo thread, cause full price isn't on my list of desirables. And I can't imagine waiting for the library to have it!!!)

Originally Posted by CRussel

Grrrr. Apparently they haven't fixed the Canadian codes issues. Good, I can wait a couple of days.

And the new 50% multi-use code works just fine on it. Well, I probably should feel guilty, but too bad. Already bought and converting to AZW3.

[Dngrsone]

Originally Posted by Rev. Bob

Funny, that's one of my very recent acquisitions. Please let me know what you think.

Thanks to a daughter who kept me up all night, I have powered through more than half the book (Armageddon Girl) already, and I like it. The main character (the aforementioned geek gal) has a wonderful sense of humor and is liberal with slanderous nicknames for some of the supers that she encounters. The new world she has to contend with is fairly different from her own (ours, natch), but there are wonderful similarities and analogues between 'Earth Alpha' and 'Earth Prime' as she calls them, and many of the super-powered people are analogues of comic and pulp heroes in this world.

At any rate, I am enjoying it, and will likely continue the series.

[Fbone]

Originally Posted by Fbone

Next, a free story, The Planet Savers by Marion Zimmer Bradley.

A well-written story. It's a nice introduction to Zimmer Bradley. Rated C [3 stars].

Next is Rogue by Mark Frost. The last in The Paladin Prophecy trilogy.

[charlyee]

Two Days In Caracas: A Titus Ray Thriller.

Just started it last night.

[eschwartz]

Originally Posted by Dngrsone

Thanks to a daughter who kept me up all night, I have powered through more than half the book (Armageddon Girl) already, and I like it. The main character (the aforementioned geek gal) has a wonderful sense of humor and is liberal with slanderous nicknames for some of the supers that she encounters. The new world she has to contend with is fairly different from her own (ours, natch), but there are wonderful similarities and analogues between 'Earth Alpha' and 'Earth Prime' as she calls them, and many of the super-powered people are analogues of comic and pulp heroes in this world.

At any rate, I am enjoying it, and will likely continue the series.

Thanks for the update! This is on my TBR as well.

As requested elsewhere, I am going to list some of the other superhero books I have enjoyed recently (or not so recently):

• Marion G. Harmon's Wearing the Cape
  The basic premise is that people from all walks of life start gaining powers, there are superheros, supervillains, one-winged angels, government capes, as well as vampires, witches, Ozma of Oz (she claims to be the original), various beings out of numerous folklores, basically whatever that person associates with.
  And then real life happens, which is somewhat less common.
  Reminds me a lot of the Wild Cards anthologies, but with a somewhat more hopeful outlook.
  
  Very accurate portrayal of people. One of my favorites.
• Chelsea M. Campbell's Renegade X.
  The son of a supervillain discovers his father was a superhero, and he's being shipped off to live with the other half of his family. Worse, it turns out his power is flight (which is a problem, because he's afraid of heights -- also, the villain community will NOT be impressed). And worst of all, he ends up having to save the day. First he saves the heroes (from his own mother), then he saves the villains (from his own sidekick, no less).... Kid just can't get a break.
• Richard Roberts' Please Don't Tell My Parents... (I'm a Supervillain, I Blew Up the Moon, I've Got Henchmen).
  The daughter of two of the most famous forces for good finally develops the Mad Scientist powers she's been waiting for.
  
  Unfortunately, one of the first things that happens to her is she ends up trashing the school fair in a fight against a snotty sidekick. And discovers she and her best friends have a real talent for villainy.
  But they can't figure out how to stop....
  Bonus: no one knows how developed their powers are, and their villain alter-egos supposedly have a vendetta against (the "real") them.
• Tom Reynolds' Meta
  Standard superhero fare, nothing really stood out but it was a decent, fun read.
• Lexie Dunne's Superheroes Anonymous
  The main character was known for years as "Hostage Girl" -- need I say more? Now she becomes a superhero-in-training, and in short order, a supervillain on the run (she didn't do it). Fate really hates her.

Superheroes Anonymous is the only BPH book there -- for someone who keeps on coming to the defense of Indie publishing, I am actually rather lazy about finding such books.

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Next up: A Symphony of Echoes by Jodi Taylor.

This is a most frustrating series. It's close to being excellent. But it misses the mark in a most annoying way. I'll probably carry on in the hopes that there's some well-thought-out resolution of the various plot holes and idiocies, but I fear that there will not be.

Next up: Laugh Lines by Ben Bova.

I think I may have read this before. And I'm not enjoying it this time very much. I think I might abandon it .

[Mort1997]

Talking about Superhero books

I liked Mur Lafferty's 'Playing for Keeps'

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Playing-Keep...s=mur+lafferty


'Why does every superhero have to be superstrong, immune to bullets, be able to fly, and look good in tight clothing and a cape?
What if real superpowers come from inside? If every super power is supposed to be used for good or evil, why are some people born with completely useless ones? In this world, the superheroes are heroes, but they're jerks. The villains are charming, but manipulative and, well, villains.
And both groups got the best powers: flight, super strength, telepathy, genius, fire. The Third Wave of heroes are stuck with the leftovers: the ability to instantly make someone sober, the power to smell the past, absolute control...over elevators. Bar owner Keepsie Branson has the power that prevents anything in her possession from being stolen. Useless in the realm of crime fighting (or -causing.) Or is it?'

[Dngrsone]

I like Playing for Keeps and plan to reread that; and I have reread the Lexie Dunn books, as previously discussed. I do have the first two Roberts books, but haven't got around to them, so I'll reserve judgement there.

I did pay for the second Armageddon Girl book, will read that shortly (after a little break in the form of a non-fic or something).

I am trying our a new reading app on my tablet-- I've been using Cool Reader for quite a few years, but there are things about it that put me off, and since it seems to have stopped development, I decided to try Pocketbook (the app... people got to get more creative with names, yo); which initially didn't want to run on my Galaxy Tab 4 7.0, but has finally settled down and stopped 'stopping' three times a second.

I kind of miss the nice vellum background of Cool Reader, but I see there is an option of providing my own background in Pocketbook, so I just need to find an appropriate image to import.

[CRussel]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

This is a most frustrating series. It's close to being excellent. But it misses the mark in a most annoying way. I'll probably carry on in the hopes that there's some well-thought-out resolution of the various plot holes and idiocies, but I fear that there will not be.

I made it through the first three, and gave up after starting the fourth. Just too annoying. Too little history, too much ridiculous organizational stuff, and even silly and impossible personal details. Too bad, the series had promise, but ultimately fails.