Category: Book Reviews

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Book Review – The Forest for the Trees by Betsy Lerner

The Forest for the TreesThe Forest for the Trees by Betsy Lerner

My rating: 2.5 of 5 stars

The Forest for the Trees (An Editor’s Advice to Writers) by Betsy Lerner is a non-fiction title offering advice to writers.

The Cover: I love the cover to this book, it is simple yet creative, with a clean crisp look and clear text. This cover conveys the message that it is a non-fiction title for writers.

The Good Stuff: Hmm… Where do I start with this one? This book has numerous good-review snippets from respected sources on the front and back covers, and on the first page inside. It is well edited and the formatting makes good use of margins and spacing, making it easy to read and giving it a clean look inside. There is a nice little leaf icon for the page breaks and the version I have has used good quality paper that feels lovely on the fingers too. The writing style is easy to read, the words flow smoothly and it is entertaining.

The Bad Stuff: Okay, I’m going to put a caveat on this. I’m not sure I gave this book a fair chance. After the first few chapters I lost interest and really skimmed the rest of the content. I just felt very let down. It promised so much, yet as a self-published author, in my opinion it failed to provide much real advice at all. Maybe I missed it with my skimming, but it seemed to me to be more of an insight into the lives and types of writers, than an offer of advice.

Overall, I wanted to love this title. Everything about it drew me towards it with the promise of a good read. And it is well presented, well written, and entertaining. It just isn’t what I wanted it to be. I’m giving this one an ambivalent 2.5 out of 5 golden bookmarks because I’m having a strop.

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Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here.

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Book Review – Characters and Viewpoint by Orson Scott Card.

Characters and Viewpoint (Elements of Fiction Writing)Characters and Viewpoint by Orson Scott Card

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Characters and Viewpoint by Orson Scott Card is a non-fiction title designed to assist writers with their character creation as well as other writing techniques.

The Cover: I’m sorry to say that while this is a suitable non-fiction cover with a clear title, I find it rather boring. To me it looks like one of those school books you are required to purchase for the curriculum, only to find you never need refer to it. If not for the title I doubt I’d have picked this one up at all.

The Good Stuff: This is a very good book for the beginner writer and still offers some insights to the more experienced. It is packed full with practical advice and techniques that are clearly explained. The author’s style is easy to read and enjoyable (nothing like the stuffy feel book cover gives off). I picked up a few tips for myself and certainly found some parts of the text thought provoking and stimulating.

The Bad Stuff: As with many non-fiction titles I read these days, I feel there is unnecessary filler within the pages. It may just be that I like to get straight to the point and move on, or it may be that I am familiar with a lot of the information and am looking for something new. Either way, I found myself skim-reading or skipping through some parts of this book.

Overall, I found this to be a good title focused on developing interesting characters. Some parts of this book stimulated my thoughts on things I consider I already know. Other parts gave me inspiration around things I have given little consideration to when developing my own characters. For these reasons, I’m giving this one a character building 4 out of 5 golden bookmarks.

Want to know if you agree with my review? Grab your own copy from these links:

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Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here.

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Book Review – Creating Characters (How to Build Story People) by Dwight V. Swain

Creating Characters: How to Build Story PeopleCreating Characters – How to Build Story People by Dwight V. Swain is a non-fiction title for writers that delves into the art of character creation.

The Cover: I’ll start by saying that this book is almost 30 years old. Yet, while the cover art feels somewhat dated, it is only due to the character images and the clothing they wear. But then, they are characters and no doubt represent the stories they are set in. The colours are vibrant, the font is clear and it is a simple and clean cover. Combine this with the title and it represents a great match for the contents of this book. It clearly depicts the topic in a visual representation of the content inside.

The Good Stuff: There is solid advice within this book that will help writers create better characters. The advice is explained well, simple to understand, and helpful. There are things that I know that I’d say are common sense, yet the author made me stop and think about them, considering them more than I would have if I had not read this title. I found the book interesting in places and breezed through these sections with gusto.

The Bad Stuff: I felt there was unnecessary wordage in places that stunted the read for me. It was explaining things more than once or a little too much. I didn’t feel this way all through the book though, only in places, and it was easy to scan over and pick up the thread further on.

Overall, this is a good book for anyone who wants to gain a clear insight into creating interesting characters. If all it does is stimulate your mind to think a little more about people’s drives, quirks, and mannerisms, I’d say it has done its job. I’m giving this one a thought-provoking 4 out of 5 golden bookmarks.

Want to know if you agree with my review? Grab your own copy from these links:

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Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here.

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Book Review – Wrath of Empire by Brian McClellan.

Wrath of Empire (Gods of Blood and Powder, #2)Wrath of Empire by Brian McClellan

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Wrath of Empire by Brian McClellan thrusts us into a world in turmoil to follow the paths of 3 main characters. Lady Flint, Michel Bravis, and Ben Styke. War rages, vengeance is sought by many, espionage is all around, and there is a race to find an ancient source of power that could make or break civilisations.

The Cover: I really like this cover. It’s simple, yet effective. It aligns well with the story and it fits the genre.

The Good Stuff: Wow! I loved this book. The author knows how to leave each chapter on a cliff hanger. He switches character point of view (POV) at the end of each chapter as we follow the stories of several main characters, but he clearly grounds the reader in the POV character at the start of the new chapter. The characters are strong individuals and I love the gritty feel and conflict in each of them. The story develops well and all comes together nicely at the end.

The Bad Stuff: The only niggle I have is that the author does a little info dump at the introduction of each new character. It would have been brilliant if he had weaved the description in seamlessly, but these seams show, making them a little rough round the edges. Having said this, they are relatively short and once the characters’ descriptions have been introduced it is easy to get lost in the story again.

Overall, while Brian McClellan hasn’t knocked my favourite author from his number 1 spot, this is a great fantasy story and I really enjoyed it. The characters are all unique and interesting in their own way. The little niggles did little to dampen my enjoyment and I will be happy to read more from this author. This one is getting a solid powder-enhanced 5 out of 5 golden bookmarks from me.

Want to see if you agree with my review? Grab your own copy from these links:

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Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here.

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Book Review – A Keeper’s Tale by JA Andrews

A Keeper's Tale: The Story of Tomkin and the Dragon

A Keeper’s Tale: The Story of Tomkin and the Dragon by J.A. Andrews

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A Keeper’s Tale by JA Andrews is the tale of a boy living in the shadow of his older brother, a girl running away from her past and a dragon seeking revenge.

The Cover: I love this cover. It is interesting, it is professional, it depicts the story beautifully and it conveys that it fits in the fantasy genre.

The Good Stuff: This book was a freebie for signing up to JA Andrews blog and I was very pleasantly surprised by it. Other than the couple of points noted above, it was well written. In fact, there were parts in the beginning section that I really loved because they were so well written. The story is definitely geared towards YA and fits well into this genre. The story is quite clever in my opinion with some great dialogue. The metaphors and similes are original and the characters are likeable.

The Bad Stuff: There were one or two places in this story where the description had been dumped in a block of information. This could have been worked into the story better and revealed over a few pages, rather than clumped together in one piece. There were also one or two spots later in the story where the actions became a little stunted. I.e. He did this, then he did that, sort of thing, but it was very limited and other than that, there wasn’t really anything I didn’t like.

Overall this is a quick, fun read. I really enjoyed it and therefore I’m going to give this one a dragon roaring 4 out of 5 golden bookmarks.

Want to see if you agree with my review? Grab your own copy on these links:

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Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here.

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Book Review – She Who Waits by Daniel Polansky

She Who Waits (Low Town, #3)She Who Waits by Daniel Polansky

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

She Who Waits by Daniel Polansky follows Warden on a murder investigation in the ghetto known as Low Town. An investigation that turns out to be far more involved that it first appears.

The Cover: The cover is professional and works for the genre. I picked it as a fantasy/dark fantasy title.

The Good Stuff: The writing is competent and there are a few great lines in this title, along with a few twists and turns in the plot. I did enjoy the characters although there were some issues noted in the bad stuff below. I really enjoyed the grittiness of the world setting and the mix of social groups

The Bad Stuff: For me the biggest issue is a personal preference. I really do not enjoy 1st person POV, it puts me on the back foot straight away. Coupled with the story initially coming across as a kind of historical crime novel set in the late 17th or early 18th century, it took a while to get into. At the end of the book I was still a little confused on the time period, but then it is fantasy and I’m happy to accept that it may just be set in its own time period. While I enjoyed the characters, they were introduced with an info dump of description. I also didn’t believe the main character was consistent with his background. I haven’t read the previous books in this series, and it may be explained in those, but Warden grew up on the streets, a pick pocket and spotter, running scams, taking drugs, beating people up. Yet his vocabulary is far superior to what I would expect of someone with his background. I would never expect a character like this to use words such as gregarious, ruminations, or hedonistic, and these are just a few examples.

Overall, I enjoyed the story and the characters, but I came away a little unsatisfied. Probably a combination of my personal preference and a few little niggles with the author’s style. This is a 3.5 star book for me, but as I can only deal in whole numbers, I’m giving it a back-stabbing, dirt stained 4 out of 5 golden bookmarks.

Want to know if you agree with my review? Grab your own copy from these links:

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Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here.

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Book Review – Mortal Engines by Philip Reeve.

Mortal Engines (The Hungry City Chronicles, #1)

Mortal Engines by Philip Reeve

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Mortal Engines by Philip Reeve is a story about love, courage and survival amid Mobile cities, ravaging each other for resources in a barren world.

The Cover: A nice cover, depicting a scene from the book and conveying the genre and tone of the story well.

The Good Stuff: While the style is unusual and dated, I enjoyed this book. There are some great characters and concepts, a few unexpected turns and a well established, albeit barren, wasteland of a world.

The Bad Stuff: This is an old YA novel and the authors style is a little dated. There are multiple points of view and author interjections in parenthesis throughout the story.

Overall, this is a good YA novel. You’ll come to love the main characters and want to see them succeed. There are a few twists you won’t see coming, that start very close to the beginning of the story. For entertainment value and creativity, I’m giving this one 3 out of 5 Golden Bookmarks.

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Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here.

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Book Review – Scene and Structure by Jack M. Bickham

Scene & Structure (Elements of Fiction Writing)Scene & Structure by Jack M. Bickham

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Scene and Structure by Jack M. Bickham is a non-fiction title for writers, covering proven techniques used to write a compelling story.

The Cover: The cover works well for this title. The image reflects a non-fiction book and the title links it to the craft of writing.

The Good Stuff: At my stage as a writer, when I read books on the craft of writing I often find that there is very little to be learned from the content. This book was very different. It could be that I have not delved deeply enough into the topics covered here before, or maybe for some reason I have just not connected with the concepts, but I found that I learned a great deal from this title. It covers a great deal of content and does not go over the same ground repeatedly, using different words, as some books tend to do. The information is written in a logical way that I found really easy to understand. I also love the fact that there are further examples held back for an appendices, with a line by line breakdown that explains how the techniques have been applied.

The Bad Stuff: While I did skip read some small parts of this book, I can’t say that there was any bad stuff in it. More-so it was techniques I am familiar with and did not feel the need to go over, or one example too many that I didn’t wish to read through.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and can say I have learnt a good deal from it. This title gives a detailed, yet easy to understand, explanation of structure and form, cause and effect, stimulus and response, scenes and sequels, and chapters and plot. Well worth the money and time invested. I’m giving this book a well-formed, purposely crafted, 5 out of 5 golden bookmarks.

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Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here.

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Book Review – Red Country by Joe Abercrombie.

Red Country (First Law World, #6)

Red Country by Joe Abercrombie

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Red Country by Joe Abercrombie follows Shy South and her ‘father’ Lamb across wild country in search of kidnapped family.

The Cover: In my opinion, the worst thing about Joe Abercrombie’s books are the covers. At best they are quite plain, but I really don’t like this one at all. I don’t think this cover fits with the story, it isn’t clear what you are getting, and if I didn’t know the author (and love his writing style), this cover would not have caught my attention. I can only hope he updates them at some point with covers that do his stories justice and deserve to grace the front of his novels.

The Good Stuff: There is everything I have come to expect from a Joe Abercrombie book, right here in this novel – Blood, gore and treachery a-plenty, well developed characters and a great yarn. We see some of his old, well-loved characters like Cosca, Shivers and the Bloody Nine. I love Logen Nine Fingers and I would have liked to have seen more of him, but he does play more than a cameo role in this story and that kept my appetite sated. The characters, are in line with Joe’s style, they are hard cases you love and hate all the same. They have a visible character arc through the story and come out changed characters at the end.

The Bad Stuff: For me, this book was somewhat different from the others I’ve read by Joe. This one had a real western feel to it, which will be pleasing to some, but I would have preferred something more in line with his previous works in this world. I also didn’t connect to the main character as well in this novel as I have to his past protagonists.

I’m giving this book a menacing, sunken eyed, evil grin with 4 out of 5 golden bookmarks.

Want to know if you agree with my review? Grab your own copy from these links:

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Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here.

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Book Review – The Vagrant by Peter Newman.

The Vagrant (The Vagrant, #1)

The Vagrant by Peter Newman

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

The Vagrant by Peter Newman is a dystopian novel with sci fi and fantasy elements. It follows the story of a mute protagonist as he journeys across the wastelands with a goat and a baby (at least for the duration of my read).

The Cover: I love the cover to this book. It has great artwork and it tells me straight away that this is a fantasy novel. I even get the feeling it is set in a dystopian world and picture is a great representation of the main character.

The Good Stuff: The story was interesting, I would like to know how it unfolds – just not enough to push me through author’s prose. I liked the wasteland, the author has built a believable world, ravished by ‘demons’, where life fights to survive among the new hosts. The protagonist, while he did not talk up to the point where I stopped reading, is interesting. I find I want to know more of his story, where he came from and why he is there. I have some ideas based on the story so far, but nothing was given away by the author to the point I read up to, merely hinted at.

The bad stuff: I really didn’t like the author’s style of writing. There were lots of short sentences, to the point where the story was confusing or didn’t make sense to me in places. I didn’t manage to finish this book, I loaned it from my local library, struggled through to page 169 and when the 3rd renewal came up, figured if I haven’t gotten into the book by now, it was not worth the trouble renewing again.

I think that if you are okay with the author’s writing style, you will enjoy this book. The story is interesting, the world is believable and there is variety in the characters. Personally, I couldn’t get past the author’s style. I don’t think this was a bad book, just not a book for me. I’m only giving it 2 out of 5 golden bookmarks.

Want to know if you agree with my review? Grab your own copy from these links:

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Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here.

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