Indie Book Corner: Bluebeard's Children (Eyes of the Sun #2), by Christina McMullen

Want to read an indie book review by an indie author?  Well you're in the right place.  Today I'll be reviewing the sequel to Eyes of the Sun, Bluebeard's Children.

If you haven't already, check out my review of book one or just go straight to the purchase page to buy it here: http://www.amazon.com/Eyes-Sun-Book-ebook/dp/B00A7L7GJ0.

Bluebeard's Children picks up where the first one left off and a lot has changed in Lucy's life.  The changes are somewhat expected if you've read the first book, but one change comes as a surprise and affects Lucy greatly.  Some time has passed and we see how the events of the first book have affected Lucy and those around her.  We also meet some new people in Lucy's life.  As before, the story is filled with action and high drama, but this time right from the start.  It's all top notch and really gets you emotionally involved in the story.  It's a really good payoff for those who've read the first book and gotten to know these characters.

Right off the bat there is a huge shift in perspective for the book, which changes the feeling of it in a really good way.  Now we're in Lucy's head in a first person POV and from her perspective the emotions are stronger and the action is more vivid.  I was intrigued by this change because I planned to do the same except in reverse with a book I have sitting and completed and it's direct sequel (shameless plug for Hell Warriors).  This change made this particular part of Lucy's story a lot more enjoyable.

This book was filled with just about everything I like about books in general.  It's unfortunate, but I can't completely fanboy out like I want to right now, but you better believe there will be a list of it all at the end. I'll try to be succinct and describe some of it at least.

The dialogue was super smooth and relateable with characters offering wit, humor, and wisdom in a very simple way.  Joss Whedon would probably find this to be an enjoyable read in the vein of his own work.  You can't really have good dialogue without good characters (or can you???) and I found all of these characters to be exceptional and well rounded.  Each character felt real and you could see them living in this type of world the way they do and it all seemed so grounded.  And I loved the way everyone got a nice amount of spotlight and awesome character moments.  Towards the end there are several parts where we see just how skilled the main cast and extended cast are and just how compassionate and clever they can be.  I also like how a group of ass kickers like this can actually instead opt too use their brains to solve problems.  The characters were probably the biggest highlight of this book for me and that's saying a lot because the rest was top notch too.  With all that said, I haven't even commented on Lucy's growth as a character.  She really becomes someone that you can believe in, a truly upstanding person, a real hero.  For me, Lucy was the coolest hero I've read about in a while, and she didn't even try to be.

There are also some great concepts in the book, you know, stuff that you see in a book that makes you go "I can't believe someone thought of that!"  I had plenty of those moments especially on Bluebeard's estate.

The ultimate payoff in this book will be for those who loved the first one.  There are a ton of reveals here about Lucy and her family that'll make your head spin.  And there's a dilemma here that's usually handled very tritely in other books and media (especially comics books).  When it was used here my first response was to shake my head, but ultimately it was handled really really well here and added a lot to the story.  If you want to know what I'm referring to then check out my hidden spoiler on the shortened Goodreads version of this review.

So all in all, this book was as perfect as a book can get.  It's funny cuz it's not my 'type' of book, but the way it was written highly appealed to me.  It's a book that I'll gladly read again because it's fast paced, fun, and hits all the right emotions.  So check it out.  You won't be disappointed...unless your tastes are completely different from mine :-D.

The Quick and Dirty

The Likes

+Smooth dialogue
+Lovable characters
+Easy to follow action
+Interesting locations
+Great concepts
+Smooth read
+Lucy's likable and compassionate as ever
+Lucy's progression from the first book is tragic and believable, the mark of a person who sacrifices for others
+Amazing cast of ass kickers
+New Characters are all a blast
+More major revelations about Lucy and her family
+Smart cast, doesn't just solve problems with brute force
+Chars besides main get a chance to step up and be useful
+Every character matters and is utilized
the good guys are true humanitarians

The Only Thing I Disliked

-I'd like to think Lucy would be more rational about Andre's extraordinary circumstances early on and not hold it against him.

Check out Christina McMullen and her other works at http://mcmullenwrites.blogspot.com/p/the-books-i.html and link to the rest of her awesome blog from there too.

You can read Bluebeard's Children on Kindle by downloading it here: http://www.amazon.com/Bluebeards-Children-Eyes-Sun-Book-ebook/dp/B00COG3NJI.

Thanks for your time and now back to blogging baby!

Indie Book Corner: Eyes of the Sun, by Christina McMullen

Free Today 3/8/2015 and Typically On Sale Often

A science fiction take on vampirism more akin to (the good) Blade movies than Nosferatu.

I liked this book, a lot!  It has a lot going for it.  Interesting characters, check.  Engaging dialogue, check.  Likable main character, check.  Cool premise, check.  A sense of humor, check.  Does it stand out from the crowd of other vampire fiction, triple check!  Eyes of the Sun hits every point on my like-o-meter and then some.

Vampires

So vampires are a thing here, yes, but they are not at all what you think they are.  I'll leave the explanation to the author.  But it's interesting because it's all influenced by biology and evolution.  Run of the mill humans are more similar to vampires than one would think.  Some humans have even evolved an enzyme inside of their blood that can prove harmful or even fatal to vampires as a biological deterrent to getting preyed upon.  So when they're getting the life drained out of them by one of the bloodsuckers they can pull a Call of Duty 'Martyrdom' type move and drop the proverbial grenade on their vampiric foes to get the last laugh.  Vampires also come in different breeds here.  Some have been genetically modified to possess stronger vampire traits and some, the highest in the social order, are inbred from ancient families to achieve a purity in their bloodlines.  Whatever form of vampire you have they're all stronger, faster, and more agile than humans.

But...

The humans have technology.

That reminds me of the awesome F2P multiplayer game Nosgoth which is based around this very concept.  Vamps have the powers but humans have the tools.  The humans in question here are members of the EJC, which I'll admit is a slight spoiler for like the first three chapters.  Anyway the EJC seems like an ordinary research company to the uninitiated but is actually a tight nit group of very dedicated men and women who take to the streets at night to combat these vampires.  They use technology developed in-house and have been specifically trained for the eradication of the vampires preying on people on the city streets.  The EJC's technology is much improved over what we use today but it's not too far removed.  It seems that to be a member you have to have the enzyme that proves fatal to vampires in your blood, I'm not sure if I misremembered that or not.  They have a complex system of hunters, scientists, doctors, watchers, and a...makeup artist to aid in their goal of protection of the human race.

It has...

Moral Complexity.

Is killing the vampires right?  Do they deserve punishment?  It's not so cut and dry of an answer just like real life.

Social issues aren't shied away from.

What happens when you pair a gay, anti-religious, anti-war vampire hunter with a huge, religious, military veteran vampire hunter?  Well hilarious needling for one.  But also an actual conversation about these issues straight up.  Nothing preachy but it is addressed as Lucy tries to figure out just how these two haven't destroyed each other yet.

Which leads to...

A likable, funny, tough, and complex cast.

Every time I was introduced to a new character I found something fascinating about them or just found them enjoyable.  Just like real life, these fictional characters are complex and multifaceted.  Even if you don't like something about them you may find a trait about them that you do like.  The dialogue was snappy and filled with wit and the character interactions were just equal parts hilarious and heartfelt.  You really get the feeling by the end of this that the EJC was like one big family.  It's really fun getting to know everyone.

There is romance and it's done really well.

Not much to say here without spoiling stuff.  I'll just say that it's obvious who gets together.  The author even hints at it through palm reading before we meet the love interest.  The joy here is in the journey, not the outcome and what a sexy journey it was.

The main character.

Lucy is pretty cool.  She's whip smart and mostly normal but has a nerdy streak.  She is educated, has a bit of a chip on her shoulders, and is quite used to losing family.  She starts this book alone in a new city with only two close friends, who it turns out she knows nothing about.  Lucy is naturally inquisitive and observant which are both good and bad traits in the world of vampire hunting and survival.  Another good and bad trait that's strong in her is her stubborn streak.  She just does not give up and when she feels a certain way it’s hard for her to simply 'go with the flow.'  She'll speak up and she'll make some changes before she accepts something she isn't comfortable with and *spoiler ahead* this makes her a very unorthodox yet effective vampire hunter.  Her reckless fighting style is actually pretty cool and makes sense for her in the beginning.  And *huge spoiler ahead* her blood, which is a combination of modified vampire and hunter, which is an incredibly rare mix may at first glance seem Mary Sue-ish but it's actually handled quite well and never makes Lucy boring or overpowered as many like to complain of characters with special traits like this.  The training here accounts for a lot and there was never a scene when I saw Lucy engage with a vampire that I didn't feel like she might just lose and lose badly.

The action is awesome.

It's fast paced, grounded, clever, and very descriptive.  No detail was missed here and the environment was used really well in all scenes.  Each fight feels very distinct because of this.  Because of my slight sexism I hadn't expected this from a female writer.  That was only a partial joke by the way and yes, I give you permission to hate me.

I said so much already that I feel the need to wrap this up.  So nothing is perfect and that brings me to...

What I didn't like.

The first few chapters felt rushed, specifically a big part of chapter 1 and some parts of chapter 2.  There was a big wall of info on Lucy's past on the second and third page at a moment when I couldn't care less about who Lucy was.  There's also a huge mistake that chapter 2 Lucy makes that the Lucy I've come to know didn't seem like she would have made but this I can forgive since the thought of love makes us all do crazy things.

Only one other small thing bothered me and it's so trivial that it doesn't really matter.  It's the retractable fangs.  I'm bothered by these, not because they exist but because they weren't given a contemporary scientific explanation like everything else.  I'll admit that there's a huge chance that I might've glossed over it but it seems strange that it's just part of the package like the rest since this vampirism isn't like 'normal' vampirism.  It just feels like a genre holdover but you know what?  How freaking' weird would a vampire with flat teeth be?  Answer: really freaking weird!  So I'll wrap this up by saying some questions don't need to be answered and some traditions must never die.

Now here's that summary of points that I know the abridgers like so well.

The Good

+Humorous

+Science Fiction Edge

+Smart Ideas

+Witty Dialogue

+Sexy Moments

+Lucy is Likeable and Competent

+Cast is Likeable, Funny, Tough, and Complex

+It's Fun Getting to Know Everyone

+Author Has the Courage to Talk About a Few Social Issues

+The Structure of the Organization is Clever and Interesting

+Dress Up Stuff is Cool, Fun, and Makes Sense

The Bad

-First Chapter Seems Rushed as a Lot of Info is Quickly Given on Lucy

-The Lucy I've Come to Know Doesn't Seem Like She'd Make the Same Stupid Mistakes That She Did With Tim at the Beginning

The Trivial

-Unexplained Retractable Fangs

Find it at

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Eyes-Sun-Book-ebook/dp/B00A7L7GJ0
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17984582-the-eyes-of-the-sun
Author's Blog: http://mcmullenwrites.blogspot.com/

Check out my review of the book's sequel: Blackbeard's Children

Indie Book Corner: Exurbia: A Novel About Caterpillars, by Alex McKechnie

Prepare for lots of Caterpillar references.  Also this picture links to the books Amazon page.

Exurbia: A Novel About Caterpillars will not be what you think it is.  Well it wasn't for me because I didn't have the wonderful blurb that's out now since I had an ARC to read.  So I went into this quite blind and I must say that I was treated to one of the best books I've read so far this year.  I'll actually go a step further and say that this is—as of February 28, 2015— the best book I've read this year and I've read a few really good ones so far.

Now for the substance.  This book is filled with amazing ideas about spirituality, transhumanism, individuality, collectivism, and morality.  It made me ask myself, just what defines humanity?  Is it our physical bodies or is it our consciousness, is it all that and more, is it none of that?  What's more impressive is that my mind was addressing these questions only secondary as a monumental plot was taking shape in front of my eyes.  The fact that this book both entertained me and made me think very deeply about my very existence and other very broad and heavy subjects, for me, puts this at a level of great fiction.  My favorite games (Legacy of Kain), animes (Big O), and shows (The Wire) all manage to do this and enthralled me in the fiction.  Now it comes as a shock to me that this is a series.  I read this thinking it as a standalone book and the ending wraps it all up very nicely.  I imagine someone else's story will be told in the next one but hell, I'm definitely looking forward to it.

Okay now I'll do a sort of critique here, both good and bad.  For some reason I want to do the bad first, maybe because that's what I encountered first.

The beginning confused the hell out of me.  There was so much new and crazy terminology and names thrown at me that it was tough to wrap my head around it all.  I couldn't tell what were real terms and what was what the author might have made up for his fictional future.  My instinct was to stop and try to force myself to understand it all but being an indie author myself and a pretty slow reader with two (low paying) jobs I had no time for that.  So I just pressed on and didn't give a second thought to those confusing terms, only guessing what they meant to keep the story flowing.  Eventually I did figure out what it meant thanks to all the context clues that the author, Alex, provides and the terms are used repeatedly for good effect which forced me to learn them.  Somewhere near the middle it all makes sense even sooner if you don't have trouble focusing on the beginning of new books.

And to continue that thought it does take some time for some concepts to be fully explained but I don't know if that's good or bad.  By the end every question I had was suitably explained, two big things in particular.

That list of negatives is actually awfully short now that I look at it.

Okay now for the good.  This book is filled with amazing ideas of science and spirituality and gave me that feeling of being a part of some new frontier adventure.  It felt like what I imagine the late 1800's and early to middle 1900's felt like, like I was a part of something grand and new, and impossible.  I'm amazed at how it all meshed together so well and flawlessly.  Just about every part of this writing was strong including the characters which I don't expect from science fiction books because the few I've read have not had the strongest characters.  My favorite characters in order had to be Jura the aging physicist trapped between two worlds, Mrs. Butterworth *snicker snicker snicker* the mysterious woman from space with an even more mysterious agenda, 261 the moralising imp (awesome title) a genetically modified man made for the purpose of impartial judgment, Moxiana a girl with strange dreams and a penchant for heralding mass destruction, and the old crone who protects young Moxiana despite premonitions that she will die doing so.  Everything escalates very naturally plot wise and then goes super crazy near the end to where I could not put the damn book down even when I had other pressing things to do. And we're introduced to this future in a very natural way and it’s really a wonderfully beautiful world.  Hell even destruction comes in the form of a gorgeous LSD inspired wave of beauty.

Anyways I could go on and on about a lot of the stuff inside the book but this is already pretty long so I'll just leave you with the generic list of positives and negatives to summarize.

The Good

+Smart Read

+Beautiful prose and descriptions and not overly long.

+Complex terminology is used often enough that it becomes easier to understand

+Intellectually strong characters like my favorites Jura, the Moralising Imp 261, Moxiana, the old Crone, and Mrs. Butterworth.  There are many more besides my favorites.

+Great ideas

+The plot escalates nicely and the climax is fast paced and leaves you with some revelations that blow your mind

+Improves upon a second reading

+By the end everything is explained

+High minded ideas that creep into your mind and conscience, great philosophical fodder.

+Highly imaginative future

The Bad

-The very beginning confused me to no end with an overload of tough terminology

-It takes a while for some concepts to be fully explained

Links

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24932938

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Exurbia-Novel-Caterpillars-Infinite-Triptych-ebook/dp/B00T4EV660/