108.
Title: [Reaper Man]
Author: Terry Pratchett
Genre: Satiric Fantasy
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Purchased
Date Completed: December 29, 2016
Rating: ****

The character of Death in Terry Pratchett's Discworld is a fan-favorite, just outside of human existence enough to ask probing existential questions, just robotic enough to be interestingly uncanny, yet familiar and human enough to garner sympathy and interest. Death is not something (or someone) to fear, but a force (and personality) that is simply there, no matter what. Reaper Man is the book in which this personality is most fully developed for the first time, building on his last appearance as a master taking an apprentice, and focusing on Death as a primary character.

Concerned about his force of personality - the fact that he is a he at all - the Auditors of the universe decide to force Death's retirement, introducing his own life timer, and sending Discworld into undead disarray. With time on his hands for the first, well, time, Death rides off to experience life, settling in as a farm hand while trying to work out this whole existence thing. Meanwhile, the rest of Discworld is noticing a stasis of life, with people and things dying ... but not going anywhere. Such is the case with Windle Poons, a wizard who achieves 130 years and dies on appointment, only to get up a bit later when the afterlife isn't quite what he expected. After all, there's nothing there, and for the first time in awhile he has the force of will to walk and talk.

Under the care of Archchancellor Ridcully, the wizards are far more endearing and entertaining, a first look at the undead offers a good chuckle to fans of horror, and the true character of Death shines.

The book puts me in mind of another piece of Pratchett's writing: his 2010 essay My Case for a Euthanasia Tribunal. I used this in the college classroom to teach rhetoric, which Pratchett uses beautifully, but I also enjoy his writing for the thing itself. It also speaks to how and why Pratchett creates his Death character as he does.

Back to write reviews, because the holiday is over and now I can.

104.
Title: [Moving Pictures]
Author: Terry Pratchett
Genre: Satiric Fantasy
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Purchased
Date Completed: December 18, 2016
Rating: ****

Moving Pictures is the first in the "industry" sub-genre of Discworld, and satirizes the rise and fall of a HollywoodHoly Wood
empire.  The Alchemists have learned how to turn light, not lead, into gold, and set out into the desert, away from the oppressive gaze of Wizards who may call it magic, to do just that.  Around the Discworld others feel the pull and draw of Holy Wood, and set out to fill their niches.  What none realize, however, is that the untimely death of a hermit priest, who never found time to train a successor, has released an unusual magic into the social sphere, and its this menacing force which is luring people out and into a world of fantasy.
The sarcasm and satire of Moving Pictures carries a narrative of forgettable characters, and serves as a solid stand-alone book for those who enjoy old Hollywood, and Pratchett's brand of snark.


105.
Title: [The Reptile Room]
Author: Lemony Snicket
Genre: Children's
Medium: Kindle
Acquisition: Library
Date Completed: 12.19.16
Rating: ****

After the discovery of Count Olaf's nefarious theatrical plans, the orphans are withdrawn from the proffered peace of a life with the Judge, and instead taken out into the countryside to another very distant and hitherto unknown relative.  They are relieved to find that this relative is rather well suited to their emotional and intellectual care, as a portly scientist who is rather fond of movies. Violet, Klaus, and Sunny feel almost guilty in their relief and happiness, and look forward to the expedition on which they are scheduled to depart with their cheerful new guardian.

That is, until the new assistant arrives.

The second installment of Unfortunate Events is perhaps even more charming than the first. Reading much like a short story to an adult audience, the pacing is strong, the narrative voice is compelling, and the predictability contributes rather than detracts from the story's overall success.

106.
Title: [Hyperbole and a Half]
Author: Allie Brosh
Genre: Graphic Memoirs
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Library
Date Completed: 12.20.16
Rating: ****

Even readers who are unfamiliar with likely know the work of Allie Brosh, if only for the saturation of meme culture and the use of her "All the Things." 

The Original:


And homages/appropriations:
 

Brosh's book is a collection of short essays and narratives, most (if not all? I'm not entirely sure) available on her blog, but perhaps more satisfying in physical textual form for reasons only my nerdy-lizard-hind brain understands. Her self-awareness and self-deprecation serve as both a point of sympathy and understanding for the reader, and as a defense mechanism for the author, and the end product is a collection of narratives which turns discomfort into something ultimately positive.  No knowledge of her blog is necessary to enjoy Brosh's writing, and it may make an interesting segue into the world of graphic texts/memoirs for those who are not traditionally fans of the genre.

107.
Title: [A Christmas Carol]
Author: Charles Dickens
Genre: Ghost Story
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition:
Date Completed: 12.22.16
Rating: *****

In deference to long nights, foreboding weather, and a general desire to cozy up to their fellows, the Victorians enjoyed a publication tradition perhaps a bit unusual today, but one which I would love to see revived: they marketed ghost stories for Christmas.  Literary magazines would publish special "extra" editions in December, and featured both serialized and whole works of fiction of the gothic or horrific bent, like Robert Louis Stevenson's "The Body Snatcher," published in December of 1884. The popularity of the macabre is a well-known nineteenth-century cultural institution, and as they invented Christmas as we largely understand the celebration today the Victorians maintained their investment in the cult of mourning, the macabre, and a hyper-awareness of the tenuous nature of life.

Charles Dickens' short novel A Christmas Carol is a fantastically constructed cultural capsule, delightful in its prose, familiar in its story, and charming in its narrative. It is the Christmas Victoriana known and assumed today, and while Victoriana is itself far more complicated than this, one could do worse than Scrooge, ghosts, and a Dickensian Christmas.  I attempt to read the book every December, and it's no laborious task - and I'm not one who generally enjoys Dickens.

103.
Title: [A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Bad Beginning]
Author: Lemony Snicket
Genre: Children's
Medium: Kindle
Acquisition: Library
Date Completed: 12.12.16
Rating: ****

The Baudelaire children, Violet (14), Klaus (12), and Sunny, are privileged, intelligent, and loyal figures who are very quickly orphaned by a catastrophic fire, and whisked off to live with a previously-unknown relative, Count Olaf. Olaf, of course, has eyes only for their fortune, and begins some dreadful scheming as soon as the bank solicitor Mr. Poe informs him that no one can tough the fortune until Violet is of age. Intended for early readers, the plot of this novel is quick and simple, without being simplistic - Lemony Snicket does not make the mistake of underestimating his readers, and instead shows that he believes children can handle unsavory narratives and new vocabulary with just a little help. The story is built on themes such as sibling bonding, research, self-sufficiency, and the absolutely ludicrous culture of adulthood which favors strange legalities over happy endings.  I will certainly suggest this one to my own offspring, and will seek out the second for myself.

102.
Title: [The Girl With All the Gifts]
Author: M.R. Carey
Genre: science fiction
Medium: hardback
Acquisition: Library
Date Completed: Gave up after 250 pages
Rating: **

Released as a film in September of 2016, Carey's The Girl With All the Gifts seemed to be a fresh take on the dystopian zombie genre, offering fresh ideas and dynamic characters in a thoroughly saturated market. The protagonist is Melanie, a young girl with no memories other than the compound in which she lives, and understanding the world outside only through the lessons she and her fellow children receive from a handful of questionably-qualified instructors. As the novel progresses, or if the audience has already seen the trailer, it becomes clear that Melanie is actually a zombie child, and that the facility is testing zombie children who retain some semblance of mental prowess in order to distill an antidote, or vaccine.  The strength of Carey's novel is in Melanie herself, whose complexity is balanced with her naturally childlike innocence and demeanor - here is a zombie one would want to shelter and protect, whose IQ is higher than most of the living adults around her. She's fascinating, and not just to the likely-psychopathic Dr. Caldwell who has collected these zombie children as test subjects to be dissected and discarded.

And after 250 pages I just couldn't push through any further.  I really wanted to like this book - it holds such promise. Ultimately, though, I found the secondary characters to be wooden, the plot plodding, and the push for differentiating too ludicrous.  Take, for example, the vocabulary of this dystopian world: zombies are called hungries.  Hungries.  Because the obvious "zombies" is too ... banal? And "hungries" is so much more ... I have no idea. It's a juvenile departure from canon that disrupts the attempts at scientific and humanistic approach, suggesting a sophomoric and nearly hispter approach that is unnecessary for the progress of the text. The characters are trite to the point of exhaustion, and after so long I just couldn't care any longer. While I would love to know what happens to Melanie, I just couldn't invest any more time in the book.


A point of curiosity from the film preview: they've swapped races. Melanie, blonde-haired and blue-eyed in the novel, is played by Sennia Nanua; Helen Justineau, described as an overwhelmingly beautiful woman of African descent in the novel, is portrayed by Gemma Arterton. While I'm inclined to posit theories and offer cultural analysis, I'm resisting the temptation without seeing the film. Still, it seems like a potentially charged decision to change the race of the captive, dangerous, at-times bestial zombie, held in captivity by militant white figures.

101.
Title: [Eric]
Author: Terry Pratchett
Genre: Satiric Fantasy
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Purchased
Date Completed: December 10, 2016
Rating: **

The most favorable feature of this books is its length, coming in at just 197 pages and utilizing a larger-than-usual font. A young demonologist tries to call a hell-bound slave to satisfy his three wishes, and in a plot twist never believably developed ends up with the lamentable Rincewind instead. Rincewind is a coward, dislikes the current situation, and tries to run. The end.

100.
Title: [Guards! Guards!]
Author: Terry Pratchett
Genre: Satiric Fantasy
Medium: Kindle
Acquisition: Purchased
Date Completed: December 7, 2016
Rating: *****

Some of the most memorable characters in AnkhMorpork are on the Watch, and this is the first novel which introduces them to readers. Sam Vimes is the mostly-drunk Captain of the Night Watch, whose primary function is to yell "all is well!," and who quickly run the other way when it isn't. Vimes, though, possesses an ingrained sense of "right" which is at war with his drunken lethargy, inspired by the cruel mistress that is the city he loves, and which is ultimately brought to the forefront by an enthusiastic new recruit, Carrot, and the Patrician's assurance that the (extinct/imaginary) dragon Vimes claims to have seen could only be a large wading bird.  And that's the tip of the iceberg.

As Vimes attempts to unravel the mystery of the dragon, readers follow the actions of secret societies, watch a developing monarchy, and meet Sybil Ruskin, the posh warrior-esque woman who raises small swamp dragons. Full of wit and satire, and driven by strong characters, Guards! Guards! is a particularly enjoyable Discworld novel, and a clear favorite for fans.

99.
Title: [Pyramids]
Author: Terry Pratchett
Genre: Satiric Fantasy
Medium: Kindle
Acquisition: Purchased
Date Completed: November 29, 2016
Rating: ***

This rather plodding and repetitive novel follows Teppic, the prince and later kind of a strip of dessert kingdom known for building pyramids, never changing, and being the one division between two far larger and more prosperous countries. Following the request of his deceased wife, Teppic's father allows his son to attend the School for Assassins in Ankh Morpork, where wealthy citizens often send their children, as the school boasts an excellent and thorough education - for those who survive. After Teppic's final exam mystic events call him back to the country of his birth, which he recognizes as exceptionally backwards and uncomfortable, especially under the control of the head priest Dios, who resists change like the proverbial unmovable object.  Though Teppic may be sympathetic for his role as young leader with new ideas, facing the same obstacles as every other younger generation attempting to wrest control and inspire change from the last, his only interesting qualities come from his role as an assassin, which is far too limited. The book as a whole is entirely predictable, and not in an overly enjoyable way, with most of the interest being left behind once Teppic journeys home. I'm not sure if I dislike this book as much as I dislike the first two, but it's not one I'd want to return to a third time, and serves here as only a checked box in my determination to read all of Discworld in order. It still earns three stars for being a Pratchett, which means fantastic one-liners, and general superiority to others of the genre.

Feeling super cruddy, so after a morning of chores I finished this one in the bath.  And as soon as I drained the tub my partner came dashing in to tell me that a pipe has busted, pouring my bath water all over the bathroom below.

Sigh.

98.
Title: [Wyrd Sisters]
Author: Terry Pratchett
Genre: Satiric Fantasy
Medium: Kindle
Acquisition: Purchased
Date Completed: November 27, 2016
Rating: ****

It's particularly easy to describe the plot of Pratchett's Wyrd Sisters: it's Macbeth. Largely. With humor, big personalities, and a whole different kind of magic. Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg, and Margrat are three Ramtops witches held together in a familiar but not always warm friendship that is inevitable when mixing big personalities and trying to introduce new ideas to traditionalists.  But when a king is murdered, and the land makes it clear that the new ruler is unacceptable, the makeshift coven works together to try to set things, if not to rights, at least back to a familiar peace.

A master of character-driven narratives, Pratchett gives readers a cast that is nearly uncanny - familiar, and yet apt to behave differently than one would expect. The hijinks are enjoyable, and the familiar story is made surprisingly cheerful and humorous for a plot of murder, intrigue, and madness.  While not my favorite, the witch books generally do not disappoint.

97.
Title: [Die Like an Eagle]
Author: Donna Andrews
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Medium: Kindle
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: November 25, 2016
Rating: ****

It's time for Meg Langslow's twins to start baseball, and who else would step in as team mom, as Michael coaches the young Eagles? New to the league, Meg and Michael are quick to learn of the reigning terror of Biff Brown, whose Draconian mismanagement of the league and grounds has caused quite a bit of disquiet.  When Biff's brother ends up dead in a ball field outhouse everyone assumes the killer got the wrong guy - or that Biff himself may have done the deed.

In the past I've had some difficulty reconciling Meg's constant movements and subsequent detachment from her immediate family, from whom she spouses her identity derives. This book, though, does much better in establishing a sense of reality, improving the suspension of disbelief needed in fiction, and further humanizing many of the characters. Although the neighborhood is growing in a series already saturated with big personalities, many of Meg's family fall back to make room, and Andrews establishes a good balance of old and new characters without overwhelming the reader. The mystery, too, is very well paced, and offered some turns and developments I did not expect, even given my experience with the series. A fun mystery, and one I'd recommend for fans of the series.

96.
Title: [Sourcery]
Author: Terry Pratchett
Genre: Satiric Fantasy
Medium: Kindle
Acquisition: Purchased
Date Completed: November 23, 2016
Rating: ***

<>Here we go again...
Everyone knows that Wizards must avoid relations with women ... unless they're cooking their food or working stains out of their laundry, of course. But some years ago a wizard fell in love, was booted from Unseen University, and proceeded to father eight sons.
And thus Coin, the first sourcerer in thousands of years, is born, and the magic of Discworld threatens to return to its earlier state.

A third Rincewind novel, this follows his adventures with new but not entirely unfamiliar company, as propelling forces, including his own conscience, lead him in an awkward attempt to save the Disc from the disaster of the previous Mage wars. Like other Rincewind novels, and perhaps Wizard novels in general, the novel fell a bit flat for me. Though the humor is better than the earliest books, I think I just can't find interest in people Wizards behaving stupidly, even when they demonstrate their own better knowledge.

The rising action, climax, and conclusion are all resoundingly familiar, following the same pattern as the other Rincewind novels, and collectively showing very little development in character or narrative complexity. Unless one is a strong fan of Rincewind or Disc wizards generally, I wouldn't enthusiastically recommend this installment.

94.
Title: [Equal Rites]
Author: Terry Pratchett
Genre: Satiric Fantasy
Medium: Kindle
Acquisition: Purchased
Date Completed: November 16, 2016
Rating: ****

The Eighth Son of an Eighth Son is destined to become a wizard, and a dying wizard may choose, as he nears death, to pass on his magical lineage to another when such a one is born. Equal Rites opens with a wizard traveling with just such a behest in mind, approaching a blacksmith as the blacksmith's wife is busy bringing their eighth child into the world. Thinking that it wouldn't be such a bad thing to have a wizard in the family, the blacksmith doesn't hesitate to drag the midwife out with her bundle the moment the child is born, and neither man listens as she protests the rites of magical staff passage to the infant, followed by the wizard's immediate and expected demise.  And thus the first female wizard is made, Granny Weatherwax is quick to retort, huffing at the mess these men have made.

At a time and place where witches are (women) useful members of society, curing ills, serving as midwives, and generally seeing to the natural order of things, and wizards are (men) magical intellectuals fretting about ceremonies and dinners and copious amounts of tobacco, a young girl starts to shake things up. Caring for her, Granny Weatherwax at first takes on the girl to train her as a witch, but as her powers grow Granny sees that Unseen University, the school of wizardry, is really the one place for her to learn to control her powers.

Equal Rites is the first book in the series to introduce Discworld Witches, Granny Weatherwax specifically, and the small communities of the Ramtops. It tackles gendered professionalism and education with wit and understanding, and establishes immediately and lastingly one of the biggest personalities of the series, who will continue to be a favorite throughout the sub-genre of Witch novels. With each novel the Discworld becomes more refined and just a tad sharper, and as the novels focus on characterization the charm of the canon is quickly developed.  A great read.

95.
Title: [Mort]
Author: Terry Pratchett
Genre: Satiric Fantasy
Medium: Kindle
Acquisition: Purchased
Date Completed: November 17, 2016
Rating: *****

On a cold night in a small town Death approaches the last remaining boy seeking an apprenticeship, just moments before the hiring day concludes.  Seeing the  ANTHROPOMORPHIC PERSONIFICATION as he truly is, the boy Mort nonetheless accepts the offered indenture, as his father less-clearly agrees to allow his son to accept an apprenticeship as a mortician. Flying away on Death's magnificent horse Binky, Mort sets off on an adventure that takes him from AnkhMorpork to Klatch to Death's own realm, learning the scythe, shoveling horse manure, and generally bickering with Death's adopted human daughter, Ysabel.  Hijinks, adventure, and general comedy ensue.

The character of Death, not unlike Granny Weatherwax of the last, is a great favorite of the series, here growing from his earlier abrupt appearances into a distant yet invested figure at once separate from humanity, and yet occasionally curious about the human condition. Taking on an apprentice sets him adrift, and as Mort struggles to find his dead-sea-legs, in the business, Death finds himself with time off for the first time, and tries to figure out what all the hullabaloo of life is really about.

This is the first of my re-reads as I work though Discworld in order of publication, and I was just as charmed the second time as the first. Death is likely my favorite character in the series, so it was a relief to come to the character I know, as opposed to the far more aggressive figure in the early Rincewind novels.

93.
Title: [The Light Fantastic]
Author: Terry Pratchett
Genre: Satiric Fantasy
Medium: Kindle
Acquisition: Purchased
Date Completed: November 13, 2016
Rating: ***

In the first Discworld novel, The Colour of Magic, readers are introduced to Rincewind, a failed wizard whose head holds a spell so frightening that all of the other spells he attempts to learn are too frightened to be remembered. This one of Eight Great Spells serves as a major catalyst for The Light Fantastic, which sees Rincewind on his return journey with companion-tourist Twoflower, as a blazing read star appears and frightens the inhabitants of their space-swimming world.

Rincewind is not one of my favorite characters, but the cast that Pratchett builds is already beginning to resemble the Discworld inhabitants I know and love so much - most notably, Cohen the barbarian. With strong pacing and good comic timing, The Light Fantastic is already a narrative improvement over the first, and shows the promise that the series will develop by its end.

92.
Title: [The Long Halloween]
Author: Jeph Loeb
Genre: Comic
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: November 8, 2016
Rating: ****

The Long Halloween tell the story of a mob-drenched Gotham City, and Batman's tenuous relationship with Gordon and Dent as the triad attempts to subvert the control of professional criminals. But when these criminals start dying by assassination, the media dubbing the serial killer "Holiday" for his/her preferred time of executions, doubt begins to creep in, and even the more colorful rogues of Gotham show interest in putting things to rights. The primary characters of interest here are the mobsters and Dent, the focus being the struggles against principles and necessitous action carrying the narrative through, with only brief interventions of the cowled hero in a well-paced examination of right versus wrong. The success of the book hinges on its careful pacing and strong characterization, ultimately rendering the book a success for its development of the Batman canon, and resistance to relying on the ex machina of the titular character.

91.
Title: [The Colour of Magic]
Author: Terry Pratchett
Genre: Satiric Fantasy
Medium: Kindle
Acquisition: Purchased
Date Completed: November 7, 2016
Rating: ***

The Colour of Magic, first in Terry Pratchett's Discworld series, introduces readers to A'tuin, AnkhMorpork, and a genre for which Pratchett will come to be known, mixing fantastic elements with wit, charm, and cultural awareness to create a space that is both humorously foreign and delightfully familiar. In this the first, AnkhMorpork is introduced to something entirely new - a tourist, who has purposefully left his prosperous continent in order to experience "everything" the twin cities have to offer, and beyond. Having the fortunate misfortune of giving this poor sap a linguistic hand at a tavern, Rincewind is consequently charged with protecting the tourist by the Patrician himself, and what follows is a series of struggles from cultural and personality clashes. The joyful absurdity that is the Luggage makes its first appearance, and Twoflower and Rincewind are engaging protagonists different enough to inspire the narrative, but not so dissimilar that it's unclear how they could come to be companions. Ultimately, though, this is not the Discworld I know and love - having read The Truth first, many many years ago, and enjoying all of the later novels, returning to the first (for the first time) was a bit jarring, as the book lacks the polish and charm of the later productions. Little is seen of AnkMorpork proper, there's too much going on in the plot with too great reliance on magic to move from space to space and, most tragically, Death is not the character he comes to be.

If this had been the first Pratchett I had read I don't know that I would have continued; it's very much a first-novel, and as a reader who doesn't actually favor fantasy I don't know that it holds much for me. However, as an actual fan it's interesting to go back to a beginning of which I was unaware. And so begins my project of reading the entire run, in order.

90.
Title: [Bodies]
Author: Si Spencer, et al.
Genre: Comic
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Purchased
Date Completed: November 4, 2016
Rating: ***

At four points in time, but presumably the same space, a mutilated body is found, and an unusual murder investigation begins. Thrice, the detectives in charge demonstrate integrity which positively marks them, and once the very deviance of the detective generates strong interest in the reader. As the audience skips from point to point, seeing the parallels lost to the characters in the story, they are treated to sympathetic and interesting characters, fantastic and varied artwork, and an engaging pace which builds and threads from four corners all to a central point. Unfortunately, once that point is reached the strength of the text dissolves, along with any semblance of originality, and not even the compelling protagonists can pull it through. Taking strong cues from the ridiculous moves and conclusion of From Hell, which is similarly smart and interesting until taking this turn for the worst, the narrative dissolves into the ridiculous, and is so close to Alan Moore's take on Jack the Ripper that its adaptation walks the line of direct mimicry. Those who enjoyed the conclusion of From Hell would likely enjoy Bodies just as much, and I'd encourage them to do so. For others, I'd say that the early development and artwork are reason enough to pick it up, but would caution anyone from growing too invested in the book's conclusion.

85.
Title: [Dark Night]
Author: Paul Dini
Genre: Graphic memoir
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: purchased
Date Completed: October 2016
Rating: **

To call this a "True Batman Story" is figurative, and does the job of disguising the genre through the application of the author's profession. The book describes, as promised, a dark night, and the author's brutal and violent beating that left him physically devastated and emotionally crippled. The author, it happens, was a writer for the then-running Batman cartoon, and in his ennui he struggles with why his favorite fictional property "wasn't there." In his own mind, the author retreats to a society of cartoon and comic characters, using dialogue to try to work through his own psychological trauma and depression. The characters appear, but are not themselves, looming familiarly but unfamiliarity, as they are imagined by one of their authors, but represented for his sole purpose.

His experience is a terrible one, and the therapeutic power of the creation of the book is undeniable. He writes that he hopes his story may give others hope, who may identify with his life or experience. As a reader who does not, I felt badly for his experience, but found the book as a whole indulgent and of little personal value.

86.
Title: [Fashioning Gothic Bodies]
Author: Catherine Spooner
Genre: Fashion and Literary Theory
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Library
Date Completed: October 2016
Rating: *****

As amazing as I find this book, I won't be able to properly review it until long after my comprehensive exam (in which it features heavily) ... which begins tomorrow.

87.
Title: [Dress Culture in Late Victorian Women's Fiction]
Author: Christine Bayles Kortsch
Genre: Fashion, Gender, and Literary Theory
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Library
Date Completed: October 2016
Rating: *****

Equally as amazing as Spooner, equally as important, with the same looming deadline that leaves me unable to write anything but my exam answers.

88.
Title: [Hidden Destiny]
Author: Carrie Ann Ryan
Genre: Supernatural Romance
Medium: Kindle E-book
Acquisition: Purchased
Date Completed: November 2, 2016
Rating: ***

Still in social and intellectual recovery from October, I said to a friend on Wednesday that "what I really need is a smutty novel and a bath bomb."  And then I immediately looked up a series I had read once-upon-a-time, and had a relaxing soak.

 
89.
Title: [Tattered Loyalties]
Author: Carrie Ann Ryan
Genre: Supernatural Romance
Medium: Kindle E-book
Acquisition: Purchased
Date Completed: November 3, 2016
Rating: ***

And then, even though the last one wasn't really that great, I downloaded another, which kept me occupied while I stood in line for early voting.


Tonight I'm working on the introduction of my dissertation prospectus, and then plan to treat myself to [Bodies], which arrived today, and looks to be very promising.

81.
Title: [Catwoman: Selina's Big Score]
Author: Darwyn Cooke
Genre: Comic
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: September 20, 2016
Rating: ***1/2

A re-read, with some interesting history

82.
Title: [Catwoman: Vol. 1 the Game]
Author: Judd Winick
Genre: Comic
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: September 21, 2016
Rating: ***

Another reread.

83.
Title: [Victorian Fashion]
Author: Jayne Shrimpton
Genre: Fashion History
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: September 23, 2016
Rating: ***

Jayne Shrimpton's slim volume is a brief introduction to the forms and functions of fashion; its greatest value is that it does not limit its object of study to women's fashion, as is common, but rather extends her subject to men and children as well. Some interesting trivia is included for the more-familiar, such as the inspiration for men's facial hair, and the origins of the term "crinoline," but the text is more greatly geared towards the curious but uninformed. While it does not suit my current purposes, it is a charming little book.

84.
Title: [Victoriana]
Author: James Laver
Genre: Material Culture, History
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: September 25, 2016
Rating: ***

James Laver’s Victoriana is a companion history for aspiring collectors of Victorian kitsch, broadly identifying artistic movements and points of taste. The content of the book is a glossing of material culture, more useful for its illustrative presumptions and suppositions, often reading objects at face value (such as fashion plates representing “real” life) and thereby articulating cultural beliefs that may run contrary to the lived experiences of even the Victorian middle class.  Much of this use value is expressed in Laver’s introduction, which both defines “Victoriana,” and offers such keen insights as “the collapse of Victorianism …[and] the end of the Patriarchal System” thanks to the “New Woman” (25), and “the result [of the emancipation of the servant class is] that all women are now back at the kitchen sink” (25). That these two statements occur in parallel paragraphs speaks pretty greatly to the cultural moment of the 1960s, and undoes the argument that Victorianism and the Patriarchal system have collapsed.

80.
Title: [Gotham City Central]: Jokers and Madmen
Author: Greg Rucka, Ed Brubaker
Genre: Comic
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: September 19, 2016
Rating: ****

Th second volume of Gothic City Central is just as compelling a the first, carefully blending the genres of caped comics and police procedurals and ending up with a strong, character-driven book that develops carefully and with the drama and action appropriate to each, without jumping the shark (or nuking the fridge? What are we going with these days?). Well done, and a pleasure to read.

79.
Title: [Gotham City Central]: In the Line of Duty
Author: Greg Rucka, Ed Brubaker
Genre: Comic
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: September 17, 2016
Rating: ****

Rucka and Brubaker's Gotham City Central occupies the mundane world of Batman's Gotham City, taking a step back from the extraordinary of masked antiheroes and villains to develop an understanding of a police force faced with both typical and atypical crime, and a compatriot they don't exactly like, but understand they must call in when the atypical runs amok. These are the men and women who serve as Gotham City detectives, investigating rape and murder and abductions, and who are faced with the terrifying reality of supervillains from time to time. Though Batman exists in the text, he's on the fringe of the narrative - a looming necessary evil that the squads resent, and try to limit, but nonetheless needs to be called in from time to time. Though almost entirely missing the iconic figure of The Bat, Gotham Central is far from dull, and works well to show readers that Gotham itself, and the people who inhabit this fictional New York, can be just as compelling, and are far more than fodder in the extravagant fight of masks and capes. There are triumphs and failures, prejudices and personal lives, and a negotiation between morals and expectations. The artwork is grim and compelling, avoiding flashy colors and elaborate scenes for the texture of a place you expect to find in reality.  A well done work, and a wonderful addition to the Batman canon.

77.
Title: [The Perfect Gentleman: the Pursuit of Timeless Elegance and Style in London]
Author: James Sherwood
Genre: Fashion History
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: August something, 2016
Rating: ****

The introduction to The Perfect Gentleman develops a personal narrative which clearly situates the subject of the volume with the author's own experiences and romanticization of his subject (which is not, I should clarify, a criticism of the author or his text, but rather a recognition of a personal investment which often seems to drive fashion historians). Recognizing the role of materiality and commercialization in the establishment and maintenance of the identity of a British gentleman, Sherwod offers in his volume a series of brief histories of accouterments now closely aligned with the social role, so as to be indistinguishable from the signified. Though Sherwood asserts that the text is academic - and no doubt his research itself was an academic endeavor - the volume produced is much more of a fleshy coffee-table book - a collection of stories and histories interesting to fashion enthusiasts, but not deeply academic or useful for true research. Thus, it illustrates, but does not advance, the field.  I loved the trivia it offers, such as the origins of the expression "mad hatter," but theses stories are more delightful quips than actually useful to the project at hand. Still, if you're interested in gloves and hats and tobacco, and just why certain brands are associated with high class gender construction, this is a fun book to pour over. Recommended for pleasure, but not research.

78.
Title: [Suicide Squad: The Nighshade Odyssey]
Author: John Ostrander, Luke McDonnell, Bob Lewis
Genre: Comic
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: September 2, 2016
Rating: **

The Suicide Squad is built on the premise, as Amanda Waller is so fond of repeating, that its members are expendable; criminals are sent on dangerous missions of questionable integrity by a manipulative government, upon which relies their freedom and their lives. Literally sent to die in some cases, they fight not for integrity or a sense of right and wrong (despite the assertions of their "leader," who is given a cheap form of guilt morality), but for a chance to escape confinement, or to win aid in unfortunate personal trials. The premise itself remains intriguing, as it brings into question the assertion of villainous identities - who is named a villain, who names villains, and who can really determine what is "right" - but the second volume clearly believes its characters are just as expendable as Waller asserts. Without characterization, without any level of humanity, without any interest these blank humanoid figures are sent out and recalled, fight and share horrible snippets of melodramatic dialog, perhaps with a moment of personal angst from a figure or two. They are, nearly to a one, nothing, and there is very little to engage the reader. I'm actually glad now that the series has caught popular attention, because it means DC will take the property more seriously, and therefore produce stronger books with a great idea.

76.
Title: [Suicide Squad: Trial by Fire]
Author: John Ostrander
Genre: Comic
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: August something, 2016
Rating: ****

I liked the movie.  Honestly, I thoroughly enjoyed it - I left the theatre smiling and giggling and overall pleased with what I had seen.  I enjoyed the comic-like dialog, thought the music was well paired, and enjoyed the creative representations of most of the characters.  I hated the Enchantress plotline, but thought it clever and engaging that the true antagonist of the film is the industrial military complex of an American system devoid of checks and balances. As a scholar deeply involved in identity studies, I appreciated and followed the subtle discourse on villainy, its meaning and meaning makers, and its denoters. And I especially like Harley Quinn - yes, really. I know that there are many "fans" who love to hate Margo Robbie's presentation, but the arguments seem so shallow - I have a good friend, for example, who only wants HQ in her "real" Jester suit, when she hasn't donned the hideous thing in ages. Someone has been avoiding anything but the 1990s cartoon, methinks. The film recognizes that even in insanity Dr. Quinzle is a highly educated woman, who loses her sanity but not her intelligence. It also clearly recognizes that her actions are very much so a conscious performance, explicitly engineered to enable her a specific social and group standing.  I won't go into specifics, but I'll point to the car in the rain - there's a lot of depth in that scene. I also think it adds an interesting element to the Joker/Quinn romance, actually allowing them one, and making space for Quinn not as an abuse victim, but a willing participant in a nonnormative relationship. I think there's more there.

I have plenty more to say about the movie, but so does everyone else in the US right now, and mine is just another shout in the wind. What's pertinent here is that these detractors lead me to actually read the comic which inspires the film, and I equally loved it.  And the comic is everything the movie haters love to criticize about the film.

One complaint about the film was awkward exposition, which I'll say is entirely fair - and completed grounded in the comic, which does exactly the same thing. Boomerang and Enchantress are equally weak characters, and some of the awkward dialog and assertions of self are right there in the pages.  The first comic describes the building of the team, Amanda Waller's motivation and the consequences of her actions, and the murky morality of everyone involved. It's an interesting premise, believable in the world in which it takes place, and makes great space for a creative reintegration of well known villains.  Worth a read, I say.

Three more graphic novels bring me to my initial goal!

73.
Title: [The Saga of the Swamp Thing]
Author: Alan Moore
Genre: Comic
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: August 8, 2016
Rating: ***

Alan Moore's Swamp Thing is a canonical graphic novel that breaks new ground and shepherds the genre into new themes and ideas, abandoning caped crusaders to follow philosophical conundrums posed by the creation and existence of the humanoid character now known as Swamp Thing. I know this, and I knew it going into the book, but ultimately the entire text felt like an unfortunate chore - how I'm sure some high school freshman unfortunately feel when forced to read Romeo and Juliet because "it's a classic." I have no intention of debating Moore's influence on the genre, nor his prolific, and often intriguing productions. His narratives don't click for me as a general rule, and this book is no exception. While it was suggested to me both for its cannonical status and for its narrative on Othering and villainy, I didn't find anything that isn't likewise represented in texts I find more enjoyable to work with. A good box to check, but not a favorite for me.

74.
Title: [300]
Author: Frank Miller
Genre: Comic
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: August 9, 2016
Rating: ***

I saw the film 300 long before I knew the story was based on a graphic novel, and snagged it off the library shelf on a whim just recently. What I found was a treat of a story, paced and illustrated much like the kind of mythology which inspires its tale, and brief in its development and execution. The art style is a strong voice in the overall telling of the Spartan warriors willing to sacrifice their lives for their king and his stand for autonomy against an arrogant but powerful imperialist interloper. I couldn't help but let my imagination and the film fill in the narrative holes left in the original story, and I'm not quite sure that's a bad thing - there's certainly more to be said, and more one wants to hear about this march of men.

75.
Title: [Catwoman: A Celebration of 75 Years]
Author: Frank Miller
Genre: Comic
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: August 9, 2016
Rating: ***

This collection of Catwoman stories is the second I've read of its kind, and the editors select largely different representative stories, which allows me a stronger understanding of where the character has been, and where she may be going. Most valuable, though, are the editor's own descriptive introductions, placing the comics and the character into a larger cultural narrative, the better to understand her full development and impact; they speak of shows and movies, trends and cultural artifacts, and work to illustrate how she is a product of her time, while also timeless. Though I haven't yet found what I'm looking for in terms of primary source material, I'd say that this anthology is a great introduction to a classic anti-hero/villain/opportunist nearly as old as Batman, and just as dark and compelling.

70.
Title: [Batman: The City of Owls]
Author: Scott Snyder
Genre: Comic
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Comic Store
Date Completed: August 2, 2016
Rating: ***

A sequel to the incredible Court of Owls, The City of Owls follows Batman as he seeks revenge on the Court, penetrating their previously impervious boundaries and hunting for those in true control. Secondary stories follow Dr. Freeze and his "romantic" mission against Wayne Enterprises, the teenage electrician Harper Row, and Alfred's father's confrontation with the Court of Owls. Like teh second in many popular trilogies, The City of Owls feels most like a filler book, offering narrative and development without great engagement with developing plot points.

71.
Title: [The Joker: Endgame]
Author: Scott Snyder
Genre: Comic
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Comic Store
Date Completed: August 3, 2016
Rating: ******

This.  This. This book is a spectacular epic following the Joker's grand masterpiece of a final act, ultimately infecting over 90% of Gotham city and pushing Batman to his true limits. Woven throughout the book are teaser biographies of who the Joker "really is," whispered and shared by escaped Arkham Asylum inmates, their psychiatrist, and even boarding school students hiding from the madness of the chemical warfare beyond their school gates.  These biographies illustrate the reach and influence o Joker not just within the Batman canon, but in popular culture as a whole, demonstrating the hunger comic readers have for the "truth" behind the Joker's mystery, and the power of myth to grow and morph and promise and deny throughout telling.  As a whole, it is suspenseful and creepy, matching action with what amounts to ghost stories, and the ultimate twists are deeply satisfying and well written for such a spectacular character. Following the arc of Death of the Family I couldn't fathom what DC or Scott Snyder could do with the Clown Prince, and I for one am quite satisfied with their creative choices - and I'm thrilled for it analytic potential for my current research.

72.
Title: [Pretty Deadly]
Author: Deconnick, Brios, Bellaire, Cowles
Genre: Comic
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Comic Store
Date Completed: August 3, 2016
Rating: ***1/2

Pretty Deadly is a fictional Western in which a young girl, Sissy, travels with her adoptive paternal figure, performing the story of Deathface Ginny as her own mysterious past unfolds around her. When Death comes to release a Beauty from her Mason husband, who has jealously locked her away in a tower, Death himself falls in love with the young woman, and together they produce a daughter, whom Death names Ginny. This mythology is the clearest narrative in the entire book, which as a whole teasingly places Sissy in the story, and slowly reveals the truth of the fairy tale, and the parts played by the characters included. The artwork is lovely, but the story feels clumsy, especially after reading Monstress; had I read Pretty Deadly first I may have rated it more favorably, but after such a great book this one falls a bit flat.

65.
Title: Lost Girls: Volume 3
Author: Alan Moore
Genre: Graphic Novel
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Borrowed from Diss Adviser
Date Completed: July 14, 2016
Rating: ***1/2

66.
Title: [Hit List]
Author: Laurell K. Hamilton
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Probably Pre-ordered once upon a time
Date Completed: July 12, 2016
Rating: **

This may be the most hideous book cover ever used by a professional publisher. The ethos of the book is immediately destroyed by this visual presentation, and the book itself does nothing to recover.

67.
Title: [Kiss the Dead]
Author: Laurell K. Hamilton
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Probably Pre-ordered once upon a time
Date Completed: July 18, 2016
Rating: **

Neither of these books in the Anita Blake series is especially engaging, forgettable nearly as soon as they're put aside. I've missed Bullet in my straight-through attempt at a series, because a friend had my copy, and I'm currently deciding whether I want to go back to it, or skip it entirely; apparently I wasn't very impressed the first time around. I know the story picks up a bit in later books, so I'm tempted to just keep looking forward.

68.
Title: [Affliction]
Author: Laurell K. Hamilton
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Probably Pre-ordered once upon a time
Date Completed: July 25, 2016
Rating: ****

I enjoyed Affliction both for its character development (finally!), and for the balance of romance and action.  When Micah's sheriff father is struck with a strange disease in the line of duty, his mother calls Anita, and the principle menage-a-trois travels home so Micah can say goodbye.  Coming home for the first time since falling under the tyranny of Chimera, Micah's stress is increased by both his former efforts to alienate his family for their protection, and a fanatical family branch who literally has his worst interest at heart. Introducing himself as a functioning member of a polyamorous relationship is the icing on the social cake, and ultimately this introduction serves to further the otherwise stagnant personal relationships that run Anita's household.There's more than initially meets the eye in nearly every social interaction, and resolution is found.  Anita gets back to work, with Edward on board, and seeing her in the field helps re-center the character in her non-amorous life (though, as other readers said, the social tension she encounters in these professional situations is repetitive to the point of pointlessness, no longer offering useful tension but adding a layer of annoyance to the plot lines. Not every secondary or tertiary character should serve as a therapeutic revelation and positive assertion of self). As an urban fantasy/romance the story is reasonably engaging, and provided just the entertainment I hoped for.

I struggle with the series from a number of critical perspectives, particularly as it clashes with my own theoretical allegiances. However, I don't read these as objects of study - I read them to check out and indulge, and Affliction lead me back to doing just that.

69.
Title: [Dead Ice]
Author: Laurell K. Hamilton
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Pre-ordered
Date Completed: July 28, 2016
Rating: ***

Dead Ice, the Anita Blake installment of last summer, is a classic case of Laurell K. Hamilton's misdirection: promotional materials would have readers believe that the novel focuses on a case involving zombie porn, and the "apparent" (i.e. everyone can "tell") capturing and reinsertion of soul into the zombies being manipulation for the purposes of pornography. Smacking of a badie from before, Anita's anxiety spikes as she attempts to discern the identity of the animator, and just how he can accomplish this vile act once managed by only one priestess in the world.

Except ... the case barely registers.  As per usual, the circumstances of Anita's involvement in an FBI case are marginal to her personal confrontations, which in this book involves her ball-busting new guards and trying to do something with the disaster that is Asher (and Kane). The original case is a wonderful premise, and one worthy of development, but the novel completely fails this plot in favor of watching Anita stomp around the Circus asserting her big-doggedness and gaining even more metaphysical power.

I've come to realize that rereading the series in order was perhaps not the best decision if I wanted to maintain my casual fandom: these books are much more entertaining in isolated bursts of quick entertainment, and do not stand up to the test of extended development in synchronous reads. Though I love many of the characters, Anita is not one, and I'm finding myself more relieved than entertained that I've now finished the available series. I'm hanging on for the wedding, because it seems like the one true moment of progress I've seen, but I'm not nearly as excited as I was a year ago.

64. 
Title: [Monstress]
Author: Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda
Genre: Graphic Novel
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Pre-ordered
Date Completed: July 12, 2016
Rating: *****
Monstress tells the tale of Maika Halfwolf, an Arcanic searching for answers to her own existence in the aftermath of a holy war which sees a tenuous peace between humans and Arcanics, which still allows for the slavery of the later by the former. Of curiously unknown half-human half-Ancient origin, Arcanics are fantastic humanoid characters of highly variable appearances, treated as beasts by humans, and literally consumed by witches who use their flesh for the production of illium, a magical solution.  Mysteriously more powerful than expected, and carrying a dark presence even she is unaware of at the first, Maika is driven by the death of her mother, the secrets the woman took with her, and a hunger that frightens both herself and the characters around her.  The narrative offers careful world and story-building, showing bits of history interspersed with the present to maintain the enjoyable uncertainty of the story without wholly confusing the reader. Complex characters with strong histories and motivations drive the story, and the fantasy of the time and place encourages immersion in a place that is entirely other, but eerily family and thus seemingly possible. The cover offers Neil Gaiman's critique that the book is "Remarkable: a beautifully told story of magic and fear," and I wholeheartedly agree.  Well done.

63.
Title: [Flirt]
Author: Laurell K. Hamilton
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Probably Pre-ordered once upon a time
Date Completed: July 10, 2016
Rating: **

Flirt, a novella in the Anita Blake series, loosely uses the premise of flirtation as a personality trait to direct a melodrama of love, desire, loss, and violence. Opening with two uncomfortable professional interviews, in which Anita has to deny each client their request for the animation of their deceased spouses, Anita contemplates the flirtatious drives of a handful of her loved ones before being unceremoniously kidnapped by mercenary werelions. When someone can't take no for an answer, things get ugly, with fairly predictable Anita Blake results. The book introduces a character I find exceptionally interesting - namely, Nicky - but in such a way that the conclusion is overly obvious from the very first.  The story is weak and poorly planned, rushing to the climax (pun intended) without joy or enthusiasm.  If you've missed this one you're not missing much, and experience has shown me that the character is better explored later in the series.

59-60.
Title: [Lost Girls: Volume 1] and [Lost Girls: Volume 2]
Author: Alan Moore
Genre: Graphic Novel
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Borrowed from Diss Adviser
Date Completed: June 16-17, 2016
Rating: ****

Alan Moore's three-volume Lost Girls is a pornographic re-visitation of three familiar fairytale characters meeting, and enjoying clandestine affairs, in an unusual hotel.  Alice (of Wonderland) is a wealthy elderly lesbian who has been socially shunned from her family - not that she cares much; Wendy (Darling) is a meek and submissive wife still daydreaming of dalliances in the park with a fairy-like young man; Dorthy is a spunky American Westerner spinning yarns of frisky farm life for her European companions. Together, the women share their sexually deviant but fulfilling histories, while enjoying a casual intimacy which is represented as comfortable and engaging, asking nothing and giving everything: the stories known to us as children are represented as metaphors for sexual awakenings and adventures in a very adult world. Realistically, there are some power dynamics which show a tendency towards predatory consumption of  young women, and taboos are unapologetically represented as part of the characters histories. In the telling, though, Moore gives each of the characters agency, allowing them the pursuit of pleasure and interesting a way that would have been (and arguable still can be) denied young women, and negates any sense of shame or apology. In a first reading I'd then suggest that this is an intriguingly feminist text, at once acknowledging how society and social groups can take advantage of young women, and how those same young omen can find their own autonomy in the ownership of their sexuality. Moore's take on these traditional female figures captures and articulates the strange in-betweeness of Victorian sexuality - that which shouldn't be, but is undeniably there. It also expresses a keen understanding of intended audience and fairy tales, giving back to adults a space of fantasy and metaphor that the Victorians relinquished to children. The series was recommended to me by one of my dissertation advisers as I first approached a project on gender and Victorian novels and modern comics, and it's something to think about as I move forward with the project.

61.
Title: [The Female Detective]
Author: Andrew Forrester
Genre: Detective Novel
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Beach Read
Date Completed: July 5, 2016
Rating: ***

Andrew Forrester's The Female Detective, published in 1864, is the first of its kind*, introducing a female protagonist in a relatively new genre. Using the name of Mrs. Gladden, although never actually recognizing this as her legal name, the female detective in question introduces the occupation to her readers in a series of narratives, both justifying her position and actions and relating the specifics of a series of "cases" in which she is involved.  As a whole, the novel is clumsy and unsure of itself, using bracketed asides and footnotes to try to direct and clarify and generally justify the text, characters, and occupation itself. Interestingly, a true organization of occupation familiar to modern readers (and anyone familiar with police procedurals!) is missing, and Mrs. G reads more like a busybody with police connections than a competent professional; for example, in one significant case she takes it upon herself to research the strange adoption of a young girl, whose household presence secures a financial legacy, ultimately revealing the results of her investigation because it is "required" of her position, though she was hired of no one and her investigation threatens to bring true harm to very good people. Her works seems more like that of cozy mystery protagonists than a professional detective, which has interesting gender implications for the genre itself.  Not good in its own right, Forrester's novel is nonetheless an interesting cultural object for the study of Victorian culture, and the evolution of the genre.

*Like many "firsts", this is a bit contentious. However, despite the existence of Ruth the Betrayer from 1862/3, I'll maintain for my own purposes that Forrester's novel is "first." My own personal justification for this is that Ellis' text is a serial penny dreadful, a different form of publication from Forrester's formal novel publication.  Therefore, Ellis' spy may be the first female detective in English, but Forrester's novel is the first female detective novel.

62.
Title: [Clean Room]
Author: Gail Simone
Genre: Graphic Novel
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Pre-ordered
Date Completed: July 6, 2016
Rating: *****

A well-written, strongly-illustrated, highly-compelling graphic novel. Clean Room takes a Scientology-esque institution and places it into productive action, revealing an alternative awareness of the world which both enlightens and terrifies those who know. Astrid Mueller is a horror writer turned self-help guru who has attracted a large umber of devoted followers, including nearly all of Hollywood, who attend weekly "readings" and espouse her wisdom. The organization is also cited in a number of suicides, calling into question Mueller's intentions and control, and whether or not her "help" is really positive. When a reporter's fiance falls under Mueller's spell, and kills himself suddenly, she makes it her mission to expose Mueller and take down the organization. Of course, there is far more to the story than she imagines, which she discovers after being allowed a rare glimpse into the "clean room" that is Astrid's true command center. The book is a creative take on alternative social communities and suggestive of a real horror that will leave readers on edge.  The character development is strong and largely believable, making the fantastic all the more possible.  Very well done.