A Short Break

Hello and happy holidays to all. This is a quick post to let you know that I probably won't have any reviews coming out for the next two weeks or so. I'm in the middle of moving to a new place, so things are really hectic. I still try to read before going to sleep every night, but I don't have time to really get through books for reviews like I had. Once the move's done I'll be back on track.


Here's hoping you get to spend some time with family and loved ones during the holidays. See you all next year!


-The Novel Hunter

Review -- A Book of Tongues by Gemma Files

"Rough." That's the word I'd use to describe Gemma Files' Weird West novel A Book of Tongues. I don't mean it in an "unpolished" sense of the word (at least not entirely), but more along the lines of the "rough and tumble" definition. From the mythology, the world, the characters, and even the love, nothing in this novel is easy. Read on to find out where this novel shines and where it stumbles.

Review -- Discord's Apple by Carrie Vaughn

Discord's Apple is a novel by Carrie Vaughn that mixes fantasy, Greek mythology, magic, and a tiny bit of end of the world flair all together. However with all these different aspects does the novel lose focus and spread itself too thin? Or does it pull everything off? Read on to find out.

Review -- The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch

I don't care that this book is over three years old, and I don't care this is a review I wrote a couple of years ago. The Lies of Locke Lamora is just that good. Now onto the review!


I read the back cover of Scott Lynch's The Lies of Locke Lamora in the bookstore. One line in particular jumped out at me. It said, "One part 'Robin Hood,' one part Ocean's Eleven, and entirely enthralling..." Even though I don't really like descriptions that say "it's x meets y," Ocean's Eleven mixed with "Robin Hood" is almost exactly how I would describe this novel. I would also add "meets Renaissance-era Italy" to the end of the description. I think that sentence more accurately sums up The Lies of Locke Lamora.

Coming Up Next

Hey, I just wanted to give everyone a little preview of the books I'm going to read and review next. I tried to look for books that have been on my wishlist for a while. I also wanted to make sure I included some smaller publishers. They deserve some love too. So here are my upcoming books! These are in no particular order.

Pirate Sun by Karl Schroeder -- I've been waiting to read this book for a long time. I have the first two books in his Virga series in paperback, and I feel like it took forever for Pirate Sun to come out in paperback too. In fact, I think The Sunless Countries, the fourth book, came out before this one was available in paperback.


A Book of Tongues by Gemma Files -- I've heard some good things about this one. I like its Weird West vibe and the fact that it has openly gay characters. It's something a little different, and I'm excited for it. It happens to be the first book in The Hexslinger Series, so if things go well, I might have to get the sequel too.


World's End (Age of Misrule Vol. 1) by Mark Chadbourn -- One of the reviews on Amazon says that it's a "terrific urban fantasy thriller that brings Celtic mythology into modern day London." That doesn't sound like my usual fare. I think the last urban fantasy I read was part of the Dresden Files, and I think I'm two or three behind now. I'm excited because of the (supposed) inclusion of Celtic mythology, which is not something I'm super familiar with.

Avempartha (The Riyria Revelations Vol. 2) by Michael J. Sullivan -- I already reviewed the first volume in Sullivan's series, The Crown Conspiracy. I enjoyed it quite a bit, and I'm glad that I'm getting the opportunity to read the sequels.


Past Continuous by Tony Bayliss -- I was recommended this book after talking back and forth with the publisher, Sparkling Books. All I know about it is what I've read on Amazon and on the publisher's website. Still it sounds like something I'd be interested in. I can't wait to dive in.

Review -- The Red Wolf Conspiracy by Robert V.S. Redick

The giant, glowing review by Terry Brooks was the first thing I noticed when I visited the product page for Robert V.S. Redick's The Red Wolf Conspiracy. I haven't read any of Brooks' work, but I recognized the name--a fantasy heavyweight. It made me take Redick's novel a little more seriously. I added it to my wishlist, and finally bought it a couple of weeks ago. Did the novel live up to the hype? No. There are some really great ideas in The Red Wolf Conspiracy but some very, very strange issues with their execution.

Review -- Ray Bradbury's "Fahrenheit 451" by Tim Hamilton

A couple of months ago, I acquired a copy of the graphic novel adaptation of Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. It felt almost surreal holding the graphic novel in my hands. I first read the novel in high school as part of the curriculum. While many people think it is a novel about government censorship, they're wrong. Mr. Bradbury himself says that the book is about television dumbing things down by reducing information into "factoids." When I first heard this, I was shocked, because like most people, I was taught in English class that it was an anti-government censorship novel, almost akin to Orwell's 1984. But where does that leave us with this graphic novel adaptation? Is it a successful adaptation, or is some of the power behind Bradbury's words lost in the translation?

Review -- Lady Mechanika No. 0 by Benitez & Steigerwald

For most of my life, comics have been looked down upon as something "nerds read." In my younger years, I admit that I held that opinion. As I got older, I learned to see comics as a way of adding a visual aspect to storytelling. Not every comic has to be about superheroes in ridiculous leotards. Hell there's even a category out there called "graphic novels" which are basically novels with well-crafted pictures to augment the narrative. So I went out on a limb and bought Issue 0 of a new steampunk comic called Lady Mechanika. This is a first for me. I've never reviewed a comic before, and I've never actually read a comic that wasn't collected in trade paperback form either.

Review -- Neuromancer by William Gibson

William Gibson's Neuromancer felt more like an experience than anything else. I'm not even sure what that sentence means. For me, it became one of those rare, strange pieces of literature where I can appreciate its artistic merit, but not actually enjoy it. Read on to see if I can even attempt to explain what I mean.

Review -- Boneshaker by Cherie Priest

I know this book is over a year old, but I just have to talk about it. I can't help myself. With all the recent drama going on about steampunk's status as a literary subgenre or as an aesthetic movement, and the oversaturation of zombies in popular culture, some people may be wondering, "Is Boneshaker worth my time?" The answer is yes.

Review -- River of Gods by Ian McDonald

Ian McDonald’s River of Gods is a huge science fiction novel because of the scope of its plot and the number of characters in it. Of course the question is, is it worth your time? Well considering the number of awards it won and was nominated for, the answer is likely yes, though it may not be for everybody. Read on after the break to find out more.

Review -- The Crown Conspiracy by Michael J. Sullivan

The back cover blurb of Michael J. Sullivan's The Crown Conspiracy is what drew me in: "There is no ancient evil to defeat, no orphan destined for greatness, just two guys in the wrong place at the wrong time." That sounds awesome. How many times has an epic fantasy novel been weighed down by the same tropes and clichés? More than I can count. So it was refreshing to see a book that promised to do away with those things. Was the back cover lying to me? Did it completely live up to its promise? Read on after the break to find out.

Review -- Iron Council by China Miéville

Iron Council by China Miéville is the third novel in the "Bas-Lag Trilogy." Trilogy is a little bit misleading however, because while Perdido Street Station, The Scar, and Iron Council share a setting, they can be read independent of each other. All three novels share characteristics including grotesque imagrey and bizarre creatures, Iron Council is at once the most focused and the least focused of the three novels. However, I am going to call it the most cerebral. Read on to find out where I think the novel works brilliantly and where its shortcomings are.

Non-Review -- The Black Jewels Trilogy by Anne Bishop

Note: This is something of a non-review, because I did not finish the entire trilogy. However, seeing how I got over 700 pages into the tome, I believe I've read enough to make my judgements not sound completely unfounded.

I've never felt so conflicted about a book, or series of book, before. The Black Jewels Trilogy by Anne Bishop is an anomaly on my reading list. If I don't like a book, I will stop reading it, but I have a confession to make. I've stopped and restarted this trilogy twice. I don't understand these books at all, and I continued to read them in the hope

Review -- Trial of Flowers by Jay Lake

Note: This is an older review, but I thought it was a good place to start.


My expectations going into Jay Lake’s Trial of Flowers were extremely high. The front cover has a quote from Jeff VanderMeer, author of one of my favorite books City of Saints & Madmen. Awesome. The summary on the back cover compares this book to the likes of the aforementioned City of Saints & Madmen, one of my other all time favorite books, Miéville’s Perdido Street Station, and The Etched City (which sadly I haven’t read yet). Awesome yet again. Maybe my hopes were too high going into this? I don’t know. Let’s do a little examining.

First Post

Hello! I'm the Novel Hunter, and like my name implies, I hunt down novels and tell you what I think about them. Because my interests mainly lie in the genres of: science fiction, fantasy, horror, and speculative fiction, my reviews will cover books in those genres. I might occasionally talk about other books I like that fall outside those genres.


I have some old reviews that I might post, but they are from over a year ago. Who knows, some people might enjoy them.


Happy hunting!


-The Novel Hunter