The Gossamer Mage - Review

Title: The Gossamer Mage

Author:  Julie E. Czerneda

Synopsis:  “Only in Tananen do people worship a single deity: The Deathless Goddess.  Only in this small, forbidden realm are there those haunted by words of no language known to woman or man.  The words are Her Gift, and they summon magic.

     “Mage scribes learn to write Her Words as intentions: spells to make beasts or plants, designed to any purpose.  If an intention is flawed, what the mage creates is a gossamer: a magical creature as wild and free as it is costly for the mage. 

     “For Her Gift comes at a steep price.  Each successful intention ages a mage until they dare no more.  But Her magic demands to be used; The Deathless Goddess will take Her fee, and mages will die.

     “To end this terrible toll, the greatest mage in Tananen vows to find and destroy Her.  He has yet to learn She is all that protects Tananen from what waits outside.  And all that keeps magic alive.”

Review:  You all know that Julie Czerneda is one of my favorite authors, so when she asked if I would be interested in an advance copy of Mage I freaked out.  But, the freak out was on the inside because we were in public.  It was when I went to Albany NY.  Flights of Fantasy bookstore had a multi author event this Spring.  Julie Czerneda, Anne Bishop, Kristen Britain, and Deborah Blake were all there.  Last fall I promoted Julie’s new book Search Image, you can check out the live videos on Facebook and read the review of Search Image here on the blog.  It was my last blog push before taking a little break for my mental health, and I’m glad that it was for my favorite science fiction series.  So, anyway, I met Julie in person at this event and she asked if I would like to review Mage.  It was a crowded event and I was nervous (crowds in small spaces make me anxious, even when they are friendly book loving crowds), but I managed to blurt out an affirmative.  Poor SuperSteve had to listen to me chatter about it all the way home (it was a 4 hour drive and we stopped for dinner at Cheesecake Factory).  It went something like this:

Me: “I introduced myself, but she knew who I was!”

SuperSteve: “That was awesome.”

Me: “She asked if I wanted to review Mage!”

SuperSteve: “That’s awesome!”

Me: “I shook her hand.  And I talked to her!  I mean, I talked a little.  I was really nervous, and it was crowded.  But she knew who I was!”

SuperSteve: “That’s awesome!”

    Yeah, I admire authors like others admire actors.  But would you expect anything less from someone who is obsessed with books and reading?  So I got Mage in the mail, and even the cover is so pretty that I took tons of pictures of it. 

     I stayed up hours past my bedtime to finish The Gossamer Mage because once I reached a certain point, and you’ll know it when you get there, I could not stop reading and just had to know what was going to happen.  I think that this is Julie’s best work so far, and that’s saying a lot because I absolutely love her Web Shifter’s series.  Mage hooked me in the first page and held me spellbound until the final word.  As is typical with Julie’s works, the world building is perfectly done, and the characters come across so real.  The interactions with Kait, her son and her uncle are beautiful.  All of the details have been fully thought out and are absolutely wonderful.  And there’s maps!  Because of Julie’s attention to detail I became fully immersed in the story, and frequently lost track of the real world around me.  Mage is darker than anything I’ve read by Julie before (and I’ve read everything she’s written).  There is always a price to pay for magic, and the price that mages pay to use Her Gift is unique (and dark), and Mal’s quest to destroy the Goddess to eliminate that price is fascinating.  Even though this is a dark fantasy it has many light moments that balance out the dark perfectly.    

     The Gossamer Mage is the most beautiful work of art that I’ve read in a long time and I might turn right around and read it again.  It releases on August 6, 2019.  Thank you Julie and DAW for sending me an advance copy!  

Publisher:  DAW

If you like this book you may want to read:

The Night’s Edge Series by Julie E. Czerneda

Ephemera Series by Anne Bishop

Search Image - Review

Title:  Search Image

Author: Julie E. Czerneda

Series:  Web Shifter’s Library

Synopsis:     “Esen’s back!  And the dear little blob is in trouble, again.

     “Things began so well.  She and her Human friend Paul Ragem are ready to celebrate the first anniversary of their greatest accomplishment, the All Species’ Library of Linguistics and Culture, by welcoming his family back – at least, he hopes so.  Having mourned his supposed death years ago, understandably, his family’s feelings are mixed.

     “Instead, they’ve unexpected guests, starting with an old acquaintance who brings unwelcome news.  Paul’s father has gone missing under dire circumstances.

     “Before Paul can convince Esen to help him search, a friend shows up to use the Library.  A crisis on Dokeci Na is about to explode into violence.  To stop it, Evan Gooseberry needs answers.  Unfortunately, the artifact he brought in trade holds its own distracting secret.  A touch of very familiar blue.  Web-flesh.

     “The race is on.  Paul, to find his father.  Esen, to search for a mysterious legacy while helping Evan avert an extinction.  What none of them realize is the price of success will be the most terrible choice of all.”

Review:  It’s been 15 years since the last Esen novel.  I’ve missed her so much!  I had no idea that Search Image was coming out until late August.  At first I just noticed it was a new novel by Julie E. Czerneda, which makes it a must read.  But then I noticed the words Web Shifter on the cover and I freaked out.  I jumped up and down and there were wordless noises coming out of my mouth.  Excited, does not do how I felt right then justice.  Ecstatic might be closer, but still falls short of fully describing the joy I felt in my soul at the realization that there was going to be a new Esen story in my life. 

***WARNING, Past this point there are minor spoilers.  No major plot spoilers though***

    

     Now that I have read it, my joy is still bubbling out of me uncontrollably.  I have told all of the readers in my life that they MUST read this book.  I love the realization of the Library and what it means to Es (I can call her Es because I think we would be friends), and what it means to Paul.  I could have read an entire novel this same length just about them running the library and attempting to reunite Paul with his family.  But there’s more!  We meet some new characters.  Evan (we actually met him in The Only Thing To Fear) is wonderful.  I really like him.  He’s afraid of everything.  Spiders, snakes, fruitcake (let’s be honest, isn’t everyone a little afraid of fruitcake?) but he pushes through those fears and is the bravest character in the whole novel.  I also really like Lambo, which I’m picturing looking vaguely crablike.  Some of our old favorite characters are back.  I love the relationship between Es and Paul, we should all be so lucky to have a friendship like that! 

     Once I started reading Search Image I could not put it down.  I laughed, I cried; I’ll be honest, I hugged and smelled it quite a few times.  I couldn’t help myself.  I was so happy to have it in my hands.  No offense to any other authors, but this was the best book I have read so far this year.  It was amazing, and I cannot wait for the next one.  But the ending!  Oh my! I won’t nag repeatedly, I promise.  But, when can we expect another novel about our favorite blue blob Julie? 

Publisher: DAW

If you like this book you may want to read:

Species Imperative Series by Julie E. Czerneda

The Silver Ships (Silver Ships #1) by S. H. Jucha; read BookGirlR’s review here

Seveneves by Neal Stephenson; read BookGirlR’s review here

Beholder's Eye - Review

Title:  Beholder’s Eye

Author:  Julie E. Czerneda

Series:  Web Shifters #1

Synopsis:  “Esen is the baby of the family.  Only 500 years old, she’s impulsive and inexperienced, but determined to prove herself.  And her first assignment, to study the Human inhabitants of Kraos without being detected, seems so easy it’s almost insulting.

     “Esen herself isn’t Human – she’s a shapechanger, whose species has more in common with an exceptionally large amoeba than with anything we’d think of as sapient.  And of course she mucks the job up royally, going from observer to passionate defender of an endangered offworld Human who suddenly, without her quite realizing how, becomes her colleague.

     “Her family is furious, and their ruling Elder decides it’s time for Esen to grow up – to learn just why the family keeps itself hidden.  For the galaxy is a far more dangerous place than she’s ever imagined – and the danger is about to find them.”

Review:  Beholder’s Eye is the first book in one of my favorite series from one of my favorite authors.  I always tell readers, especially readers that don’t care for science fiction, that this is not a science fiction story.  Sure, there are science fiction elements.  It takes place in space, on spaceships, and on different planets.  There are spaceships, space stations, humans, and aliens.  The author has put a lot of effort into world building, character building and developing different cultures.  But at its heart, Beholder’s Eye is a story about people and family.

*****CAUTION: SPOILERS AHEAD*****

     

     Beholder’s Eye speaks to me about family, both birth/blood relatives and the family we choose.  Esen’s “birth” family is Ersh, Ansky, Mixs,Skalet and Lesy.  Even before she loses them all we see that while their relationships with each other are important, most of them have chosen to surround themselves with other families.  Mixs spends most of her time on the Panacian Hiveworld; Lesy with her artist’s colony; Ansky with the Articans; and Skalet with the Kraal.  Ersh, by the very nature of being oldest, has lived a very long time.  We don’t know a whole lot about her life before she gave birth to the other members of her web.  However none of them have become so attached to their chosen web that they revealed themselves to them.  That is something which is for blood relations only.  Until Esen.  Throughout the story we see Esen starting to build her own web.  She becomes quickly attached to Ragem and even reveals herself to save his life, something which none of her siblings would have ever done.  By the end of the book her family is gone and all that is left is Esen and Ragem, and the start of her new web. 

      Even though Esen and her family are not human, this speaks to me of human nature.  Most of us have a family; even if it’s not blood.  They are the people who raised us.  The people who taught us the embarrassing things like how to use a fork, how to use a toilet, and how to behave in social situations.  When we are older the relationships with those people are still important, but they begin to change.  We begin to surround ourselves with people we choose as our family.  As we become adults we create our own web of spouses, offspring and friends.  I call mine my tribe.  My tribe consists of my husband, my cats and our friends. 

     At the very end of Beholder’s Eye we discover that in human years Esen is not even ten years old.  She has just started creating her own web and we look forward to joining her in future installments in this series.

*****Join us Tuesday September 11^th at 8pm EST on BookGirl’s BookNook Facebook Page for a Live discussion of Beholder’s Eye*****

Publisher:   DAW Books

If you like this book you may want to read:

Changing Vision (Web Shifters #2) by Julie E. Czerneda

All Systems Red (The Murderbot Diaries #1) by Martha Wells

Powers That Be (Petaybee #1) by Anne McCaffrey & Elizabeth Ann Scarborough

Stardoc (Stardoc #1) by S. L. Viehl

Web Shifter Countdown & Readalong

 

      I found out a few weeks ago that Julie E. Czerneda has a new book coming out.  This new book, called Search Image, is part of new series set in the same world as her Web Shifters series and features the same main characters.  The Web Shifters series was one of my first forays into science fiction, and has been one of my favorites since I picked up a copy of Beholder's Eye in 1999.  I was scrolling through NetGalley looking for books to request for review (even though I'm so far behind that it's going to take years to catch up) when I saw it.  What it was didn't register at first.  I thought the cover looked interesting.  Then I noticed it was by Julie E Czerneda and anything by her is an automatic read for me.  So I requested it, and continued on.  I still didn't really realize that this new book required a jumping up and down level of excitement.  It wasn't until I was approved for the e-arc and was adding it to my blog planner that I realized it was a new Web Shifters novel.  My heart started to race.  I squealed loudly.  I jumped up and down. Now that I think about it, I really should bake some cookies for my downstairs neighbor.



     I was home alone, so I immediately texted SuperSteve and told him my exciting news.  He was happy for me; but, having not read the books, he doesn't really understand.  I decided that I wanted to do something to help build up the anticipation for other readers. So I've decided to do a quick readalong of the Web Shifters series leading up to the release of Search Image on October 2nd.  Thankfully they are fairly quick reads, so I think that those of us who read a lot can make this work.  So, whether you have read the Web Shifters series before or not, please join me each Tuesday on BookGirl's BookNook Facebook Page for a discussion of the Web Shifters series including the novella The Only Thing to Fear which was released September 4th (we will discuss the new novel Search Image on Saturday October 6th to allow everyone a chance to at least buy and start reading it), schedule posted below.  I haven't decided what format the discussion will take, but am leaning toward a combination of LIVE videos and a discussion post.  Let me know if you have other ideas for the best way to have a book discussion on the internet.  The timing of the discussions are to be determined as they will have to be based on my work schedule.  The schedule of the discussions is posted below and I will update the times as I get my schedule for each week, I will also post a review of each book on the Tuesday it is to be discussed and that post will also let you know what time we will be having the discussion.  I hope to see many of you there!

Tuesday September 11, 2018: Beholder's Eye, Web Shifters #1; discussion at 8pm EST



Tuesday September 18, 2018: Changing Vision, Web Shifters #2; discussion at 8pm EST



Tuesday September 25, 2018: Hidden in Sight, Web Shifters #3; discussion at 8pm EST



Tuesday October 2, 2018: The Only Thing to Fear, Web Shifter Novella; discussion at 8pm EST



Saturday October 6, 2018: Search Image, Web Shifter's Library #1; discussion at 2pm EST 

All discussions will be on BookGirl's BookNook Facebook page.

Seeds of Earth - Review

Title: Seeds of Earth  

Author: Michael Cobley

Series: Humanity’s Fire #1  

Synopsis: “The first intelligent species to encounter mankind attacked without warning.  With little hope of halting the invasion, Earth’s last roll of the dice was to dispatch three colony ships, seeds of earth, to different parts of the galaxy.  The human race would live on … somewhere.

          “150 years later, the planet Darien hosts a thriving human settlement, which enjoys a peaceful relationship with an indigenous race the scholarly Uvovo.  But there are secrets buried on Darien’s forest moon.  Secrets that go back to an apocalyptic battle fought between ancient races at the dawn of galactic civilization.  Unknown to its colonists, Darien is about to become the focus of an intergalactic power struggle where the true stakes are beyond their comprehension.  And what choices will the Uvovo make when their true nature is revealed and the skies grow dark with the enemy?”

Review: I have made no secret of the fact that Science Fiction is my favorite genre.  It is also the genre about which I am the pickiest.  I like a certain type of Science Fiction.  Julie E. Czerneda, David Brin, and Elizabeth Bear are my favorites, and I’ve generally been really pleased with everything I’ve read from Orbit Publishing.  Strong characters and a well developed world are vital; the actual science is secondary to me.  If you tell a strong story with an emphasis on character and world building I won’t even notice if your science is a little weak or even unrealistic.  (I was an English literature major, science is not my strong suit.) 

          That said.  I liked Seeds of Earth.  I didn’t love it, but I didn’t hate it either.  Cobley obviously put a lot of thought into his world building, and character development.  I love the Uvovo and wish that I could go live with them for a time.  I love the back story of the three ships leaving earth, the “seeds of earth” and how the colonists on Darien hate AI tech because of the betrayal by their AI.  The worlds of Darien and its forest moon are complex and I love it.  However, I feel as if Cobley tried to do too much with Seeds of Earth.  There is too much crammed into this novel and it began to get a bit tedious.  The storyline jumps around between many different characters which got a bit confusing, and there are several different stories being told within this one novel.  It made my brain hurt and I had to keep taking reading breaks because I was getting jolted out of the story and had to think too hard to keep track of everything that was going on.

          Overall I recommend Seeds of Earth, and I will be reading the rest of the Humanity's Fire series, but be prepared because this isn’t a relaxing, lose yourself in another world kind of read.

Publisher: Orbit

ISBN: 978- 0316213981

If you like this book you may want to read:

Leviathan Wakes (The Expanse #1) by James S. A. Corey

Survival (Species Imperative #1) Julie E. Czerneda