Tag Archives: 21st Century

The Keeper by Sarah Langan

American Literature March 21, 2007 Superfast Reader 1 Comment

Synopsis: In a rotting-down town in nowheresville Maine, a woman with a broken mind haunts the minds of the inhabitants, tormenting their dreams and leading them to make deadly choices. Review: I picked The Keeper up after reading about it on SciFi Wire, but I have to say I was disappointed. The writing is assured, and Langan demonstrates considerable ability in bringing the reader inside the characters’ heads. She’s also not afraid of going for the gore, and some of her imagery will be sticking…

1001 Books to Read Before You Die

On Reading March 6, 2007 Superfast Reader

I have no intention of reading every book on this list. I have zero interest in reading anything more by Philip Roth, Saul Bellow, EL Doctorow, Thomas Pyncheon, or Don Dellillo than what I’ve already read, for example. But I did enjoy going through the list and finding out how well read I am. I’ll be parsing this out over several posts. This particular post is in honor of the book I read for work last night, a collection of short stories by different authors…

Throne of Jade by Naomi Novik

British Literature February 17, 2007 Superfast Reader

Review: The second in trilogy begun in His Majesty’s Dragon finds Temeraire and Laurence traveling by sea to China where Temeraire will take his rightful place as the dragon of an emperor–not a member of His Royal Majesty’s Navy battling against an ever-encroaching Napoleon. Review: Throne of Jade is a more than worthy installment in the tale of Temeraire, a dragon hatched from an egg given by China to Napoleon but seized by the English. When Temeraire hatched, the first person he saw was naval…

Notes on a Scandal by Zoe Heller

British Literature February 11, 2007 Superfast Reader 7 Comments

Synopsis: An old spinster teacher narrates her obsession with fellow teacher Sheba Hart, who is having an affair with her 15-year-old student.

From a Buick 8 by Stephen King

American Literature January 30, 2007 Superfast Reader 4 Comments

Synopsis: When a car that shouldn’t drive appears at a local gas station, the police troop that deals with it discovers that it is a portal to another world, one that seems very, very dangerous. Review: I swear I really am reading Anna Karenina. My brain was so fried, however, at the end of this crazy work trip I just took that I needed something for the plane that wouldn’t challenge me. From a Buick 8 is a King that I’d only read once before,…

Child of the Prophecy by Juliet Marillier

Australian Literature January 23, 2007 Superfast Reader

Synopsis: The granddaughter of a powerful sorceress finds herself coerced into betraying her kin to bring about the downfall of Ireland. Review: Child of the Prophecy is the third installment in Juliet Marillier’s Sevenwaters trilogy follows the story of Fianne, granddaughter of Sorcha, who saved her brothers after they were turned into swans, and niece to Liadan, the healer who managed to thwart the pattern set by the Old Ones. It’s the weakest installment, due largely in part to the lack of nuance in crafting…

Son of the Shadows by Juliet Marillier

Australian Literature January 11, 2007 Superfast Reader 2 Comments

Synopsis: The 2nd in Marillier’s Sevenwaters trilogy, Son of the Shadows picks up with Liadan, daughter to Sorcha from book 1, kidnapped by a band of ruthless mercenaries, where she learns that she stands outside of the Old Ones’ pattern–and thus might have the power to change destiny. Review: I enjoyed Son of the Shadows much more than Daughter of the Forest. The writing was richer, the characters more interesting, and the story denser. The story is set in medieval Ireland at the time of…

Reading Like a Writer by Francine Prose

British Literature, On Reading December 31, 2006 Superfast Reader 3 Comments

Synopsis: The best way to learn to write is by the close reading of great literature. Review: I wish I could get Francine Prose to tell me about every book I read. She is so astute and insightful about the craft of writing, and equally tuned into the joys that reading has to offer the lover of language. You might think that the Superfast Reader would be averse to a technique asking her to slow down and smell the sentences, but nothing could be further…

Forest Mage by Robin Hobb

American Literature December 28, 2006 Superfast Reader

Synopsis: The strange adventure of magic-possessed soldier son Nevare continue, as he finds himself expelled from military academy when his weight skyrockets after a bout of the Speck plague. Review: Forest Mage is the second book in Robin Hobb’s Soldier Son trilogy begun in Shaman’s Crossing. Interestingly, I found echoes of Orson Scott Card’s Speaker for the Dead in the clash between the progress-loving “human” Gernians and the forest-dwelling dappled Specks, and spent a good deal of the read worrying that Hobb’s story was going…

Shaman’s Crossing by Robin Hobb

American Literature December 26, 2006 Superfast Reader 1 Comment

Synopsis: A young man’s military training is threatened by his seeming possession by a creature in thrall to an evil forest goddess. Review: Shaman’s Crossing is the first book in Robin Hobb’s newest trilogy, Soldier Son, and I ate it up with a spoon, thanks to a very long train ride to Canada. The world of Soldier Son takes place in a frontier-like environment much like the Old West at the dawn of the Industrial Revolution, with Nevare, the main character, on his way to…

reading is my superpower

i read all the books