book review

Book Review: Rags & Bones Edited By Melissa Marr and Tim Pratt

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Reading Time: 2 minutes

Rags & Bones is an anthology of classic stories retold with their own twists. It’s successful authors include: Melissa Marr, Tim Pratt, Carrie Ryan, Charles Vess, Garth Nix, Neil Gaiman, Holly Black, Rick Yancey, Margaret Stohl, Kelly Armstrong, Kami Garcia, Saladin Ahmed & Gene Wolfe.

This eclectic mix of stories are short stories at their best. They all have an element of fantasy about them. It was a captivating read, were the vast majority of the stories excelled. There was only one that I felt I had to force myself to read on.

My three favourite stories were:

1. The Cold Corner by Tim Pratt

TJ was a Chef on a TV cooking competition, when everything went wrong. He came fourth place, there was some media fall out and he split up from his boyfriend.

With his life and head in a mess, he jumps at the chance to travel to his home town – Cold Corner for a family reunion. He hasn’t been one in years, normally avoiding them. But once in his home town, he discovers many copies of himself, all living different lives.

What I loved about this story is that TJ is just a normal guy, who happens to like men. His gayness isn’t made into a big revelation or issue. It is written brilliantly and is a great credit to Pratt (the author) who happens to be straight. This is the only story in Rags & Bones were any of the character’s sexuality is identified.

2. The Sleeper and the Spindle by Neil Gaiman

This story was inspired by Sleeping Beauty, so you can guess what it’s about. It is an absolute page turner, which is down to the writing and has some unexpected twists.

3. That the Machine May Progress Eternally by Carrie Ryan

This is the superb opening story in Rags & Bones. It tells the tale of Tavil the above grounder, who finds his way into the machine society below. The Machine runs everything in this underground society: it supplies the air, food, water, mental stimulation (through computerised intellectual discussions), deals with the waste, everything. Over time, Tavil becomes dependant upon The Machine, until it begins to fail. I loved the transformation of Tavil in this story.

All of the authors have great credentials. At the end of each story is an author’s note identifying which classic story inspired theirs, why they love it and what it means to them.

Rags & Bones: New Twists on Timeless Tales is available to buy on Amazon.

If you liked this post, you might like my All Books & Literature Content page.

Review soon,

Antony

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Book Review: Family Pride by Michael Shelton

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Reading Time: 2 minutes

Family Pride by Michael Shelton is written like a research article and has an extensive list reference list. Shelton highlights early on that there is a lack of representation of ethic minorities and economically disadvantaged LGBT families in the research. The book is clearly structured and styled as an educational textbook. No definition of an LGBT family is made or attempted; probably because LGBT families are so diverse in their make up and scope. Just like ‘straight’ families.

Shelton interviewed some LGBT parents and even some of their children from across America for this book. I would have enjoyed reading more of these interviews; particularly around their coping strategies for dealing with homophobia, perceived hertrosexism and subtle prejudices. I would have enjoyed reading about these LGBT families hopes for the future.

Family Pride starts with an introduction, explaining the history of gay rights movement and the extreme rightwing (anti-gay) response to this agenda. How the progress of gay rights movement has had an unintended backlash on LGBT families and put many of them in the spotlight in their communities.

I should point out, at this point, that this book is completely Americanised and lacks any international perspective. However many of the issues faced by LGBT families in America will apply to LGBT families in the UK.

Then Family Pride gives a comprehensive review of the issues LGBT families face including:

  • Internalised homophobia.
  • Stages of coming out as an LGBT to children, families and the community.
  • The facade of the perfect family.
  • Issues in schools such as the other same-sex parent not being recognised and bullying of the children by other children (and potentially some of the school staff).
  • Access and engagement with physical and mental health services.
  • The ability to access and enjoy leisure activities (including the all American Summer Camps).
  • Religious Institutions.
  • and the Police & Legal System.

In the conclusion there’s a small section dedicated to how to improve attitudes and acceptance of LGBT families, which will enable better community integration and to give LGBT families a sense of belonging.

Overall Family Pride has good, evidenced-based content. The writing style could have been more engaging and I felt that Shelton over-explained his point at times. This book is ideal for Students or Practitioners in the disciplines of Social Work, Nursing, Mental Health, Youth Work, Housing, the Police, Prison Officers and other public service institutions. It will give Students and Practitioners an awareness of the issues LGBT families face with accessing and engaging with institutions in a way that is dignified, respected and valued.

Family Pride by Michael Shelton is available to buy on Amazon.

I recently interviewed two LGBT parents for The Gay UK; so you might like to read FEATURE: Coming Out to The Kids – Paul’s Story and FEATURE: Coming Out to The Kids – Linda’s Story. You might also like my All Love, Relationships & Gay Community Content page.

Review soon,

Antony

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Book Review: Burn by Julianna Baggott

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Reading Time: 3 minutes

Burn is the third and final book in The Pure Trilogy. You might also like to read Book Review: Fuse by Julianna Baggott (Book 2) and Book Review: Pure by Julianna Baggott (Book 1) to get a complete overview of the whole series.

Burn by Julianna Baggott is the spectacular, sensational and fast-paced final book in the trilogy. Inside The Dome, Partridge is in charge, or is he? He’s forced into marrying Iralene, as he begins to uncover more of his fathers secrets. Pregnant Lyda realises that she feels trapped and would rather be in the ash-covered outside world.

Meanwhile outside The Dome, Pressia, Bradwell & El Captain travel back from Ireland with a bacterium that could take down The Dome. With The Dome being potentially able to be brought down, what will this mean for the Pures inside and the Wretches outside?

The intricate plot thickens and continues to reveal secrets of the past, even towards the end of the book. The bacterium evens the playing field between Pures and Wretches, which is indicated by this note from the Wretches to the Pures:

“We are here, my brothers and sisters,
to end the division, to be recognised as human,
to live in peace. Each of us has the power
to be benevolent.”

(From: Burn by Julianna Baggott, 11th January 2014.)

Throughout the book the characters continue to develop; giving them a sense of realism. Only the character Foresteed felt under-developed and one of convenience. He seemed to serve only one purpose: to push Partridge into making difficult decisions. His actions, thoughts and reactions in the final scene are not mentioned which was peculiar. Baggott told the reader characters thoughts often and could have shown more.

Generally the editing was good, but could have been better. The were a few noticeable typos and other mistakes in the advanced copy received; but these did not interfere with the flow of the story.

The epic finale is right at the end of the book, on the last few pages. Pressia is inside The Dome, while outside Wretches surround it in a circle and The Dome’s guns are firmly pointed at them. Will Partridge become his father? Will the Wretches be successful in taking down The Dome? And what will happen to the Pures, if they do succeed? To find you, you’ll have to buy Burn.

I was worried that Baggott might not be able to get to the end of the story. But the ending did come, and with some unexpected twists. Baggot used her poetic talent which was welcome and added depth to the ending. Don’t be mistaken in to thinking that this is a happy-ending-for-all type of book; there are gains and losses on both sides. The reader finished the book feeling satisfied and with a hope of new beginnings in a new world for both Pures and Wretches alike.

Burn is an addictive read because of the captivating plot and its fast-paced telling, which the reader will be unable to put down. Burn is written so that if you’ve not read Pure and/or Fuse you’ll still know the backstory and be able to enjoy the book.

Pure, Fuse and Burn make up a superb post-apocalyptic series that is a must read for anyone who loves these type of stories. Without doubt this series deserves an award for its originality, engagement of the reader, brilliant structure & style and expert storytelling.

Burn, along with Fuse & Pure are available to buy on Amazon.

If you liked this post, you might also like my All Books & Literature Content page.

Review soon,

Antony

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Book Review: Zombie Apocalypse! Fightback created by Stephen Jones

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Reading Time: 2 minutes

Zombie Apocalypse! Fightback is the sequel to Zombie Apocalypse! I was disappointed with Zombie Apocalypse!, but I still picked up Zombie Apocalypse! Fightback and was pleasantly surprised.

First let me explain the premise of Zombie Apocalypse! Fightback. Following the breakout of the Human Reanimation Virus (HRV) at All Hallows Church in south London; the book tells the story of Thomas Moreby (patient zero & leader of the zombies) and that of the human struggle for survival across the world.

The book uses a range of mediums to tell the story: emails, eye witness accounts, news paper articles, reports, diaries, photos, stills of video, twitter feeds and there’s even a poem. I love this idea and although Jones et al isn’t the first write in this way, they probably are the first to use the idea in a zombie story.

The plot was acceptably fascinating and well interwoven, especially considering the number of different writers. The pacing was good and kept the story moving along at a suitable pace. But the editing could have been better. It wasn’t that there were typos; but that there was a fair amount of padding that made the story feel like it could have been told in less words. There was a lot of telling and more could have been shown to the reader.

The characters changed too often and lacked depth. The closest the book came to depth was the two brothers at the camp/caravan site, which ended far too prematurely. I would like to have read much more of their story.

The ‘Twitter pages’ were the worst as they went on for far too long (I actually skipped a number of these pages) and felt completely unbelievable. The characters description of events in tweets didn’t feel right. The whole concept that he would be on twitter, when he was being hunted in a dark museum by monsters failed to be remotely believable.

Overall Zombie Apocalypse! Fightback was a gigantic improvement on Zombie Apocalypse!, but still needs more work. Anybody that likes a zombie read will enjoy it, but it will not be a reader’s favourite in the zombie story genre.

Review soon,

Antony

The Z-VIRUS Series

Z-VIRUS Powers

The Z-VIRUS mutates people’s DNA. The majority of infected people become zombies, but a minority seem immune but the virus causes them to develop powers.

At first these powers like invisibility, telepathy and telekinesis aided survival. But as the Z-VIRUS continues to mutate, the powers become more and more destructive.

Forced with no other choice, one group goes in search of a cure. But will they survive the roaming zombie hordes long enough to make an epic journey across the country to find the cure?

Join Alexis, Vis, Chan, Luke, Natalie, Grace, Chloe, Kyle, David and Goliath on this journey in Z-VIRUS Powers, the first instalment of this three part story.

Learn More
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Z-VIRUS Monsters

The Z-VIRUS is mutating, now affecting plants and animals.

A group of people, most with supernatural powers, are in desperate hunt for a cure.

Their powers which once helped their survival, are now becoming destructive.

Can they survive for long enough to find the cure? And if so, what will happen when they take it?

Join Alexis, Goliath, Luke, Lucy, Kyle, Natalie, Erin, Sophie, Kevin, George, Zoha, Harry and Ryan on this epic, entertaining and thrilling adventure.

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