Warbreaker is Brandon Sanderson‘s fifth novel. Warbreaker has all of the themes that have been played throughout author Brandon Sanderson’s other fantasy novels: epic fantasy, unconventional magic systems defined in almost scientific terms, an empire or nation on the edge of collapse, war and/or planetary destruction, and heroes(usually female) that are thrust into saving a […]
Review | The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert Heinlein
2012-11-06 · by ·
When a book has stood the test of time, has been deemed a “classic,” reviewing becomes something of a futile effort. Like an art critic reviewing the Mona Lisa or the Sistine Chapel with anything short of awe and respect, reviewing a classic novel feels a little arrogant. How does one critique what is universally […]
Review | Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole
2012-10-22 · by ·
Every once in a while I read a book because I’m supposed to, whether because it won the Pulitzer or Nobel or Booker, or some other prestigious prize, or it’s just old enough to have been granted “classic” status. Usually, the book turns out to be just as good, or at least just as notable, […]
Review | The Secret Agent by Joseph Conrad
2012-10-21 · by ·
I wish I had read this in the early years after 9/11. While the characters in Joseph Conrad’s “The Secret Agent” are not superficially the same as the characters that would figure into the terrorist attacks on 9/11 and the subsequent events, the themes are eerily similar. As a piece of literature, though, the book […]
Review | The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
2012-07-07 · by ·
The Night Circus is a story about two magicians who are in a competition to see who is the better of the two. The Night Circus is the venue selected for the magicians to compete in. To outsiders, and even those who run in the inner circles of the Circus, it is quite clear that […]
Review | Redshirts by John Scalzi
2012-07-02 · by ·
This is the fourth Scalzi I’ve read, and Scalzi proves again that he has a talent for dialogue, for character, and for crafting a clever plot in a bite size portion. While I would never call myself a Trekkie–I much prefer Star Wars, and I have never been able to buy into Roddenberry‘s vision of a utopian […]
Review | The Tower, The Zoo, and the Tortoise by Julia Stuart
2012-06-03 · by ·
Synopsis from Goodreads: Balthazar Jones has lived in the Tower of London with his loving wife, Hebe, and his 120-year-old pet tortoise for the past eight years. Balthazar is a Beefeater, one of the Tower’s guards. It’s no easy job living and working in the tourist attraction in present-day London. Among the eccentric characters who […]
Review | Drood by Dan Simmons
2012-02-09 · by ·
With Charles Dicken’s 200th birthday just passed, perhaps this is an appropriate homage to his work and his life. “The Mystery of Edwin Drood” was Charles Dickens last novel, but he died before it could be finished. Dan Simmons picks up the mystery, not to solve and finish Dickens’ work, but to provide a back story, the real […]
Review | Anthem by Ayn Rand
2012-01-11 · by ·
If you’re looking for something from Ayn Rand that’s a tad bit shorter than “Atlas Shrugged,” but can still show you her philosophy in a nutshell, “Anthem,” her novella set in a dystopian world of the future, may be worth the effort. It didn’t take me more than a sitting and a half to flip through it. […]
Review | The Appeal by John Grisham
2011-12-24 · by ·
I read this in April of 2008 after Justice Nehring (of the Utah Supreme Court) told me he was listening to it on CD during his commute each day. Three quarters of my way through it, he told me it was not worth finishing. He was right. Talk about much ado about nothing. The novel starts […]
