Geekomancy Book Review

I have a list of books, TV shows and movies on my iPod that I add to whenever I find something that sounds interesting that I don't want to forget. For instance today my daughter and I were at the bookstore and I took about 7 pictures of book covers to check into later to see if they should be added to the list. I tend to find things by checking websites like Pat's Fantasy Hotlist or listening to the Empire Podcast or Adventures in Scifi Publishing. It is the latter that clued me in to Geekomancy by Michael R Underwood (see episodes 204 and 205).

Geekomancy is an urban fantasy book from Pocket Books starring Rhiannon "Ree" Reyes, a barrista in a game store/bakery/coffee house trying to make ends meet while trying to write and sell a screenplay to Hollywood. As the story starts, Ree is quickly drawn into an underground world of magic and mayhem where objects of geek culture are embued with power that some Geekomancers can tap into to fantastic effect. Out of her normal life, Ree is soon learning to cast spells and channel geek energies all while slinging pop culture references fast and furious.

This book is a fun and rampant ride through the college town of Pearson, Oregon. Ree knows her geek culture and uses it to great effect. Similar to the outstanding Ready Player One, Geekomancy has so many geek references in any given paragraph at times it is impossible to catch them all. What I really liked about the book was the breadth of magic hiding in plain sight (behind the plot device of The Doubt that keeps normal people from believing/remembering weird stuff they see). Particularly amusing was the reference to Bromancy, which we see in action at one point - I dare you to think of preppy fraternity guys the same way again.

In Geekomancy, Michael R Underwood gives us a contemporary urban fantasy with a strong, though a bit relationship-focused, lead character in Ree. I don't want to ruin the plot, but suffice it to say there are lightsabers and steam-punky elements all mixed in this story. I am looking forward to the sequel Celebromancy (and the soon to be released novella - side-quest - Attack the Geek). There is even another novel optioned in the series, Hexomancy, coming probably in 2015. Geekomancy gets 4 Mick Happies and can be found on most ebook platforms (not available in paper form). Go grab a copy and enjoy.

Cold Days (No-Spoiler) Book Review

I have been reading Jim Butcher's Dresden Files books for a while now. I catch each book in the series on e-book just after the paperback comes out in print (it's a little cheaper that way). All of which points to why I was really surprised and happy to pick up 2012's Cold Days, the 14th Dresden Files novel, on sale for Kindle back in December. For those who aren't familiar with Harry Dresden or the Dresden Files, let me catch you up (non-spoiler fashion).

We are first introduced to Harry Dresden, Wizard for Hire, in 2000 when Storm Front was published by Roc. Harry lives in Chicago and is a Private Investigator who uses magic to help his clients. Often, he is asked to find things that are lost or stolen, a specialty of his. Through Harry we are introduced to modern-day Chicago's supernatural world with normal human police trying to keep the peace while all sorts of urban fantasy types are creating havoc.

I don't want to give away any spoilers, but each book in the series revolves around a case, mission or issue that Harry is trying to solve or resolve. He works with friends, his wits and, sometimes, brute force to try to overcome the obstacles set in front of him. He will get beat up along the way, but (since there are now 14 books with 15 on the way in 2014) makes his way through to the other side of his challenges.

The books are all written in the first person with Harry as the narrator. I can't recall that formula being broken throughout the series so far. We do sometimes get stories from other people's perspectives in the world in short story format in the Side Jobs collection. The books are fast-paced, somewhat hard-boiled detective, urban fantasy with a Wizard as the hired gun. The dialogue is witty and ready-made for translation to video (TV or movie) - which there was a short-lived SciFi (SyFy) show, The Dresden Files, that lasted for 12 episodes.

I like how the world keeps expanding and evolving through the series. We grow with Harry as he overcomes the obstacles in front of him. We see things change - neither he (nor his friends) are static. It is nice to see when often we don't want to have things change because we like the formula, but here it opens up more of the world and allows us to see things from different perspectives.

In the Dresden Files books, there is evil and good and a lot in between. Sometimes you have to walk the line of doing the wrong thing to achieve a good result and sometimes the hardest thing to do is not to submit to temptation. In Cold Days, that is similar to what Harry is dealing with. He has a job to do, but he may not like what it is or how it might affect him to do it. He also doesn't know exactly who he should trust or who he is willing to put in danger by asking for their help.

You see, after Changes and Ghost Story, things have really gone into new territory for all of the characters of the Dresden Files and Harry is working out his new responsibilities and how to handle the changes that have happened. We learn more about Harry, the world of the Dresden Files and again witness major character changes. It is surprising how big some of the reveals and story arc twists are in these later books in the series and they work. You also start to wonder how much more Harry can take.

If you like good urban fantasy with detective work, supernatural and magical elements then you probably have already tried the Dresden Files. If not, you should. Pick up Storm Front and get to know Harry and his friends. As I just finished book 14 of the series and I am eagerly awaiting book 15, I can tell you the journey is worth it and satisfying. Cold Days gets 5 Mick Happies. I hope Harry gets a little bit of a vacation before his next job.

P.S. If you like art, here is a post about making a painting of Harry Dresden by Dan dos Santos.

Lost Girl Season 2 Review

Lost Girl is an urban fantasy television show created by Michelle Lovretta and airing on Canada's Showcase (and Syfy in the US). It is the story of a Succubus, a Fae that lives off sexual energy, named Bo who grew up not knowing that she was Fae. Bo, played by Anna Silk, learns in Season 1 that there are Light and Dark Fae and that she must choose a side. Instead Bo chooses neither and along with her human best friend, Kenzi played by Ksenia Solo, she becomes a sort of private investigator helping those Fae (and humans) who can't get the help they need from the leaders of the Light and Dark Fae.

Season 2, which is available on demand from Netflix along with Season 1, finds Bo and friends dealing with the effects of the end of the last Season. I won't spoil plot details, but relationships change, new ones form and under it all there are big problems coming for Bo and her friends. Through it all, the show is interesting and doesn't get stale with just a Fae problem of the week rut.

The characters in Lost Girl are smart and witty. The show has two strong female leads in Bo and Kenzi especially with Kenzi being a human who has to rely on her street smarts to keep up in the world of the Fae. They are joined by the Fae cops, Dyson and Hale, who are a wolf-shifter and siren respectively. Add in a human doctor, a bartender who is not all he seems to be and a bunch of light and dark Fae politics and you have the ingredients for an interesting show.

I like that the writers of Lost Girl don't make you wait all season to get to the meat of problems. Issues are encountered and dealt with fairly swiftly in the show with a couple of overarching plot lines moving throughout the season. There are also nice hooks to setup what will be an eventful Season 3. The show also does well with character development from Season 1 through Season 2. Throw in a few steamy sex scenes, some kick-butt action and Kenzi's snappy dialogue and there is something for everyone (including a Fae Tony Stark inventor to spice things up). The writers also don't mind poking fun at the actors themselves such as when they have Bo mention that Dyson, played by Kris Holden-Ried, has hair like Chris Martin from Coldplay (which my wife has said has been distracting her since Season 1 but she was finally able to get past it).

If you like shows like Supernatural (first 3-4 seasons) and Grimm Season 1 then you should check out Lost Girl. We just picked up our Season 3 pass on iTunes. This show is what True Blood should have been. Lost Girl gets 4 Mick Happies. On to Season 3.