Book Review: Straying from the Path, by Carrie Vaughn

Oct. 8th, 2012 05:09 pm
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Ten excellent short stories in a book that sadly few people will buy.


Straying from the Path

WSFA Press, 2011, 198 pages



Best known for her New York Times bestselling urban fantasy novels, Carrie Vaughn has also written dozens of short stories for Talebones, Realms of Fantasy, and many other magazines and anthologies.

Collected here for the first time are ten of her favorite hard-to-classify stories covering the full range of speculative fiction -- science fiction, fantasy, horror -- sometimes all in the same story. Read about Emily Dickinson's dog, women pilots in WWII, future Hollywood, a haunted Europa, and more!

Acclaimed author and editor Jay Lake contributes an introduction to this unique collection.


( I like Carrie Vaughn's short stories much better than her werewolves. )

Verdict: It's a shame this book is so rare and expensive, because for someone like me who is not a big Carrie Vaughn fan, it was well worth reading. This collection of short stories is a nice assortment of themes, and none of them struck a sour note, so if you have a chance to read it, you should. If you are a big Carrie Vaughn fan, it's worth buying.

Also by Carrie Vaughn: My reviews of After the Golden Age and Kitty and the Midnight Hour.
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Book Review: After the Golden Age, by Carrie Vaughn

Oct. 31st, 2011 07:50 am
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It sucks to be a "normal" when your parents are the world's mightiest heroes.


After the Golden Age

Tor, 2011, 304 pages



Can an accountant defeat a supervillain? Celia West, only daughter of the heroic leaders of the superpowered Olympiad, has spent the past few years estranged from her parents and their high-powered lifestyle. She’s had enough of masks and heroics, and wants only to live her own quiet life out from under the shadow of West Plaza and her rich and famous parents.

Then she is called into her boss’ office and told that as the city’s top forensic accountant, Celia is the best chance the prosecution has to catch notorious supervillain the Destructor for tax fraud. In the course of the trial, Celia’s troubled past comes to light and family secrets are revealed as the rift between Celia and her parents grows deeper. Cut off from friends and family, Celia must come to terms with the fact that she might just be Commerce City’s only hope.

This all-new and moving story of love, family, and sacrifice is an homage to Golden Age comics that no fan will want to miss.


( You'd have daddy issues too if your father was a superhero AND an asshole. )

Verdict: This is a fine, fun, somewhat cliched superhero story with a very non-superheroic protagonist. After the Golden Age is enough like the comic books Vaughn is paying homage to that comic book fans should enjoy it, but ordinary Celia West and her romantic and family dramas, which really drive the story, make it perfectly accessible to genre fans who don't have a closet full of long cardboard boxes stuffed full of mylar bags (>..>). I can't give it a rousing recommendation as it's a book that I liked but did not love, but if you really like superheroes or Carrie Vaughn, you should find it worth reading.

Also by Carrie Vaughn: My review of Kitty and the Midnight Hour.
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Book Review: After the Golden Age, by Carrie Vaughn

Oct. 31st, 2011 07:50 am
inverarity: (Default)
It sucks to be a "normal" when your parents are the world's mightiest heroes.


After the Golden Age

Tor, 2011, 304 pages



Can an accountant defeat a supervillain? Celia West, only daughter of the heroic leaders of the superpowered Olympiad, has spent the past few years estranged from her parents and their high-powered lifestyle. She’s had enough of masks and heroics, and wants only to live her own quiet life out from under the shadow of West Plaza and her rich and famous parents.

Then she is called into her boss’ office and told that as the city’s top forensic accountant, Celia is the best chance the prosecution has to catch notorious supervillain the Destructor for tax fraud. In the course of the trial, Celia’s troubled past comes to light and family secrets are revealed as the rift between Celia and her parents grows deeper. Cut off from friends and family, Celia must come to terms with the fact that she might just be Commerce City’s only hope.

This all-new and moving story of love, family, and sacrifice is an homage to Golden Age comics that no fan will want to miss.


( You'd have daddy issues too if your father was a superhero AND an asshole. )

Verdict: This is a fine, fun, somewhat cliched superhero story with a very non-superheroic protagonist. After the Golden Age is enough like the comic books Vaughn is paying homage to that comic book fans should enjoy it, but ordinary Celia West and her romantic and family dramas, which really drive the story, make it perfectly accessible to genre fans who don't have a closet full of long cardboard boxes stuffed full of mylar bags (>..>). I can't give it a rousing recommendation as it's a book that I liked but did not love, but if you really like superheroes or Carrie Vaughn, you should find it worth reading.

Also by Carrie Vaughn: My review of Kitty and the Midnight Hour.
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Book Review: Kitty and the Midnight Hour, by Carrie Vaughn

Sep. 15th, 2011 08:44 pm
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A late-night radio DJ comes out of the closet as a werewolf.



Warner Books, 2005, 288 pages


Kitty Norville is a midnight-shift DJ for a Denver radio station---and a werewolf in the closet. Sick of lame song requests, she accidentally starts "The Midnight Hour," a late-night advice show for the supernaturally disadvantaged. After desperate vampires, werewolves, and witches across the country begin calling in to share their woes, her new show is a raging success. But it's Kitty who can use some help. With one sexy werewolf hunter and a few homicidal undead on her tail, Kitty may have bitten off more than she can chew.


( Wolves don't act like this, really. )

Verdict: If a hardbody with obligatory tramp-stamp on the cover is enough to make you read a vampire/werewolf book, then this one has competent writing and a decent story. I didn't find it to be anything special though, and after gritting my teeth through a bunch of wankery about "alpha" wolves and the heroine taking forever to assert herself (yeah, it was character development, but seeing her start out so weak, she only manages to acquire half a level in bad-ass by the end of the book), I'm not a fan, sorry. The setting isn't interesting or original enough for me to wonder what else is happening in other corners of the world, and that and interesting characters are my main reason for reading anything in the urban fantasy genre.
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Book Review: Kitty and the Midnight Hour, by Carrie Vaughn

Sep. 15th, 2011 08:44 pm
inverarity: (Default)
A late-night radio DJ comes out of the closet as a werewolf.



Warner Books, 2005, 288 pages


Kitty Norville is a midnight-shift DJ for a Denver radio station---and a werewolf in the closet. Sick of lame song requests, she accidentally starts "The Midnight Hour," a late-night advice show for the supernaturally disadvantaged. After desperate vampires, werewolves, and witches across the country begin calling in to share their woes, her new show is a raging success. But it's Kitty who can use some help. With one sexy werewolf hunter and a few homicidal undead on her tail, Kitty may have bitten off more than she can chew.


( Wolves don't act like this, really. )

Verdict: If a hardbody with obligatory tramp-stamp on the cover is enough to make you read a vampire/werewolf book, then this one has competent writing and a decent story. I didn't find it to be anything special though, and after gritting my teeth through a bunch of wankery about "alpha" wolves and the heroine taking forever to assert herself (yeah, it was character development, but seeing her start out so weak, she only manages to acquire half a level in bad-ass by the end of the book), I'm not a fan, sorry. The setting isn't interesting or original enough for me to wonder what else is happening in other corners of the world, and that and interesting characters are my main reason for reading anything in the urban fantasy genre.
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