Review: Warriors ed. by George R. R. Martin and Gardner Dozois

Title: Warriors Editors: George R. R. Martin & Gardner Dozois Format: ARC Available Formats: TC, Kindle, Sony Reader, Nook Page Count: 734 Genre: Fantasy/Science Fiction/Anthology/Assorted Genre Publisher: Tor Books Pub. Date: March 16, 2010 ISBN-13: 9780765320483 Series: Stand Alone Rating: 8 of 10

Summary:
George R. R. Martin begins this anthology with an introduction explaining his goal: a spinner rack. He says that he wants Warriors to be like those old spinner racks in candy stores, in which genres were mixed without any semblance of order. Martin and Gardner Dozois followed this model with Warriors. The anthology jumps from genre to genre without any particular order. The only qualification the stories had to have: (1) be a story about a "warrior," however that's interpreted and (2) be high-quality.

TL;DR Version:
A high quality, varied group of stories about many different kinds of "warriors." For those who like to push past pet genres, this is a must read. For those who are interested in military or "warrior" issues--a very good read.

Review:
Warriors certainly has some heavy-hitters in its ranks: George R. R. Martin, Diana Gabaldon, David Weber, Naomi Novik, James Rollins, Robin Hobb, Peter S. Beagle, Carrie Vaughn, and S.M. Stirling to name a few. Many readers will pick up the book for the Martin short story (which is, actually, one of the longest--if not the longest--in the book) which tells a story of Sir Duncan the Tall and his squire, Egg, and Gabaldon's story, which takes place in her Lord John universe. Of course, I'm sure many fans of the other authors will come out in droves as well, to see what the author offers in this genre-freeing anthology. Some, like Joe Haldeman stick with his main genre of science fiction, while others like Carrie Caughn instead chose something other than what they are primarily known for (in Vaughn's case, she's known for her urban fantasy series, but here offers a story of a World War II WASP playing detective in an environment that's very hostile to females).

Honestly, I was pretty shocked with the overall quality of the anthology. Almost every story is written well. Of course, I found some stories a little off-putting, if only because they were in genres that don't particularly interest me (though I gave them a shot) or because they seemed to have a world behind them that I wasn't included in, because I hadn't read the author before (Diana Gabaldon). Otherwise, though, it's a very strong group of stories with an interesting idea. I sort of wonder to myself whether this book will be shelved in fantasy, because the two editors are often associated with science fiction or fantasy or whether it will "graduate" to the general fiction shelves because of its diversity.

I won't talk about every story, because part of the fun of the anthology is being surprised by what you find next, but some stories I liked particularly well are:
"Forever Bound" by Joe Haldeman

In "Forever Bound" a group of strangers must learn to work together in the new military technology of the day. The thing I liked about this story is how it approaches the military, the unexpected moments of humanity throughout, and the repercussions in the story...

"Dirae" by Peter S. Beagle

Honestly explaining Beagle's story would take the magic out of it, so I'll instead just tell you what Martin and Dozois say about it: "You may find the opening pages of this story a bit confusing, but stick with it, and we promise that you'll be rewarded with a compelling study of the price of compassion--and introduced to perhaps the strangest and most unlikely warrior in this whole anthology."

"The Girls From Avenger" by Carrie Vaughn

Vaughn's story, as I mentioned above is the story of a WWII WASP trying to find the answers behind her friend's death. The story is fun both for its historical setting as well as its light feminist leanings. A very enjoyable read.

"The Mystery Knight" by George R. R. Martin

And yes, Martin. Really, this story doesn't need much introduction. Apparently, I've been missing out on the "Dunk and Egg" stories, which are found in The Hedge Knight and Sworn Sword, but I found that even without those novels as background, the story read well on its own.

Unsurprisingly, when I reflect back, the majority of the stories that are my favorites reflect my genre preferences, even if I enjoyed some of the other genre stories well enough (with the exception of Vaughn's story, which tickled my feminist self).

I'd like to say that I loved Warriors desperately enough to believe in Martin's "spinner rack," but in the end, I really can't. Sure, I enjoy a good foray into other genres now and again (and it certainly helps when they're all as high quality as in this anthology), but in the end I get more pleasure out of my pet genres. Also, I think Martin shoots down his own theory a little by dismissing the romance genre on the whole (He says in the introduction, "Okay, I confess, I never did get into romances or nurse novels."). The dismissal follows through int he anthology. And while I'm not exactly a romance fan, if one's going to truly embrace the "spinner rack"...

Anyhow, I enjoyed Warriors and recommend it to anyone curious. Of course, for anyone who has interest in military or "warrior" concepts, this is particularly fun, because one can explore a bunch of different (and often non-traditional) forms of the "warrior."

Cover/Title/First Line Critique:
I adore this cover. It's exactly something that I'd pick up off the shelf. The colors are distinctive and elegant. I love the shades of gold. And the sword. Really, it just reflects the anthology incredibly well--which is saying a lot, since the anthology itself is so varied and diverse.

Rating: 8 of 10 [Learn more about the rating system?]

This book was provided for the purpose of receiving a review courtesy of the publisher.

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Review: Birthmarked by Caragh M. O'Brien

Title: Birthmarked Author: Caragh M. O'Brien Format: ARC Available Formats: TC Page Count: 360 Genre: Young Adult/Science Fiction/Dystopia Publisher: Roaring Brook Press Pub. Date: March 30, 2010 ISBN-13: 9781596435698 Series: Stand Alone (?) Rating: 5 of 10

Summary:
Gaia lives in a future where there is a clear divide between those who live in the city and those who do not. Gaia happens to live outside the city, where life is harder. However, she enjoys her family and community, despite a facial scar that has forever set her apart as an outsider... Gaia is going to be a midwife, just like her mother. Unfortunately, the job entails being legally forced to "advance" the first three children of the month (meaning, they get sent to be adopted within the city with or without the consent of the birth mother). On the night Gaia first helps a mother give birth, her worldview begins to change. After she has to advance her first baby, which was a traumatic enough experience, she comes home only to find that both her parents have been arrested.

TL;DR Version:
An overall interesting young adult dystopian novel that was a fun enough read, even if some elements irked me.

Review:
I've been thinking and thinking about why this novel didn't do it for me. Because, it really wasn't a bad novel at all. The elements and setting were interesting. When I came away from Birthmarked ambivalent, I decided to make two lists: the things I liked and the things I did not. Looking at these lists, I think now that my problem with Birthmarked is only that I am not in the target age or experience group. Whereas most young adult books I read are aimed towards the upper end of the teenage spectrum, I think this one would be considered to be targeted a little lower. And so, it's more than possible that an 11-year-old me might've enjoyed this book far more. So I've decided that for this review, I'll just share those lists with both the positive thoughts and negative.

1. Characters
The first thing on my list for Birthmarked was the characters. Beginning the book, I felt as if there were a lot of characters I really wanted to get to know, but never got the chance. There was very little development for most characters, but rather a discovery (although a little anti-climatic) to find out who everyone was under the persona they show. This applies especially to Captain Grey.

On the other hand, I found two characters particularly well done (it's no wonder I'm so utterly confused about how to feel about this novel): Gaia and her father. Gaia is very much a child, but stubborn and smart, so it can be fun to see her decide something. Alternately, she's enabled by far too many adults (really, once she decides something, she just goes ahead and does it--and the adults usually help), which ended up making the struggles she went through feel a little cheapened, in my opinion. The second character I truly liked was Gaia's father, who isn't actually present in the story, but told through Gaia's memory.

Actually, I should add a third to that list. A girl, named Rita, shows up at integral times in the story, but isn't given much explanation or back story. I have a feeling I'd like her a lot, too, but never had the chance to officially "meet" her.

2. Science/Info Dumps
Another issue I had with Birthmarked was the science. This is partially why I say a younger version of me would have loved this book. Perhaps, if I was younger and unfamiliar with the science of genes and reproduction, I'd have been a little more absorptive and a little less skeptical or bored throughout the blatant portions of the book that are meant to instruct:

"Imagine ... that your mother gave you twenty-three spoons for your birthday... But they were very interesting spoons, all made out of chrome, and each one was a little different from the others so you could tell them apart. And then, to your surprise, you opened your father's birthday gift, and it was twenty-three more chrome spoons. When you looked at them closely you could match up your father's spoons with your mother's spoons into pairs."

...

"Chromosomes," Oliver said. (p239)

Again, if I had been younger, and not taken college-level science courses, my patience may have been better with these scenes and ideas. However, as my older (and I like to think that I'm educated) self, I found myself tapping a foot impatiently instead.

3. Babies.
A lot of Birthmarked is the story of babies. It's all about reproduction, genes, the good of populations, the good of parents... Babies. Which is an interesting topic more or less. I honestly have more interest in the gene side of things than the baby side, but whatever. Part of the problem was that Birthmarked is more to the baby-side than the gene-side for me. And what gene-side there was is filtered through the age-appropriate explanations (again, this isn't a fault of the book or author, but instead being outside of the target audience.) In fact, I'm willing to admit that this entire point is entirely full of personal bias. I particularly had a hard time when I got a specific image into my head and couldn't let it go.

That image has to do with the sheer amount of running around/fighting/escaping that is done by either pregnant women or women holding babies. And once I had the image of a girl running and holding a baby I just spiraled downward from there. From there it was a screaming baby in the arms of the girl or a baby who's being bounced around in a fight/running so much that it gets something similar to shaken baby syndrome... Really, even if it wasn't pertinent to the scene, I was inevitably distracted.

I guess, in the end, I'm trying to say that I'm certainly not the right reviewer for this book. I'm not the target audience--and I think in this case that's important--or at least the reader has to be willing to suspend their critical side more so than I'm able. I'm glad I gave Birthmarked a shot, I was pleased by several things that made it worth reading, even if it didn't quite do it for me.

Cover/Title/First Line Critique:
This cover is beautiful and amazing. I love the bits of color over the blue hazy background. Also, it's very fitting for multiple reasons. Gaia speaks about letting her hair fall in her face to hide her scar quite a lot. Also, I believe the idea behind the strands is the weaving of chromosomes/genes to create a new life, which I can roll with because it's artistically rendered. Mostly, though, I just like it because it's pretty. This is definitely intriguing enough, in a dark sort of way, for me to investigate if I saw it on a shelf.

Rating: 5 of 10 [Learn more about the rating system?]

This book was provided for the purpose of receiving a review courtesy of Amazon Vine.

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Giveaway Results: Oath of Fealty by Elizabeth Moon

Giveaway Results: Elizabeth Moon's Oath of Fealty
Honestly, I have a final a bit later today, so I'll keep this brief. I had a great time with this giveaway and was very glad to feature such a great book. I hope you all enjoy it--I think I will. Also, as a note, there will still be a review of Birthmarked out later today, despite the final exam!


Want to know who won?
For this contest, there are:
- 5 copies of Oath of Fealty by Elizabeth Moon

The winners have 2 days to respond to my email me with his/her mailing address or they will be disqualified and an alternative winner chosen. Without further ado, I bring to you the randomly chosen winners:

The winners of Oath of Fealty by Elizabeth Moon are:

Top Commenter: Erika of Jawa's Read, Too!

1. Amy S. Raquel (Skyla)
Unfortunately, because Amy did not respond, an alternative winner had to be chosen.
2. Wiredwizard (Buster) jules792000
Unfortunately, Buster didn't see that the giveaway was US only.
3. Stayawesome (Chris)
4. Shara of Calico Reaction

Within the next few days I'll be posting the next contest to celebrate 250 followers here at Book Love Affair, so keep watch!

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Monday Coming Attractions #54: Creative Writing, Anyone?

Creative Writing, Anyone?

[As a note, the second part of "Criticism of an Amateur" will be next Monday rather than this Monday. (Also, if you're a blogger and would like to be involved with that post, let me know by emailing me at spiffyish at hotmail dot com with the subject "Amateur").]

I have a bit of a dilemma. Like always, I did to myself and have no one else to blame. You see, I signed up for a creative writing course for next quarter. My line of thought was: "Well, I want some easy courses to make up for this incredibly difficult winter quarter..." Only, I've since learned that this particular class can be graded on a difficult scale. Just lovely.

Why am I worried? Well, I haven't written anything creatively since high school, when I was forced to. And even then, it was just a single short story. There lies my dilemma. I may be an English major (and thus, I like to think that I understand the individual components that go into constructing a story pretty well), but have never really seen or tried my hand at doing it myself. My earlier assumption that "Hell, writing has got to be easier than critical essays, wading through Hegel, and whatnot" may admittedly be completely off base.

So--being the confrontational person I am--I decided to just start practicing now so that I don't have as much trouble next quarter. Only, I don't know how to begin. I don't ever have a story in my mind that wants to be told and I can't think of anything that someone else would ever want to read. Although I don't want to brag, I'm not entirely sure why I can't think of anything. I've had some interesting life experiences. I've lived in multiple states, spent four years in the Army, and read voraciously. Yet, I'm just completely uninspired.

Yes, I'm completely begging for advice. Any helpful tips are appreciated.

For those of you who consider yourselves creative writers, what would you suggest to a fledgling like me to get started? If one is completely blank of ideas, how does one begin?

If any author or book review blogger would like to do a guest opinion column for Monday Coming Attractions, please contact me with what your proposed subject and what Monday you can have it ready by. For everyone else, if there's a topic you'd like to see covered in a Monday post, just let me know in a comment!

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Reviews and Events to Watch For at BLA:
These are reviews (in order of likelihood) that may or may not come to pass this week. Feel free to let me know which you're looking forward to (or not looking forward to).

Events: 250 Follower Giveaway Begins (Wednesday 3/15) Up Coming Reviews: Birthmarked by Caragh M. O'Brien (Tuesday 3/16) Warriors ed. by George R. R. Martin (Thursday 3/18) Surprise Review (Thursday 3/19)

Giveaways:
Want a giveaway promoted? Let me know in a comment! Be sure to include the URL where the giveaway is located.

Jawa's Read, Too! just concluded the last giveaway for Zoe's Tale (which I had the good fortune to win!) and has started a new giveaway for Changeless by Gail Carriger. The contest isn't up long, so go check it out quickly! Ends 3/21.

BookReaderTimes has amazing monthly giveaways. In fact, Ivy has so many giveaways that I can't even keep up with them all. All that I can say is go check BRT out for yourself!

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Giveaway Results: Numbers by Rachel Ward

Giveaway Results: Rachel Ward's Numbers
Thank you to everyone who entered to win a copy of Numbers! Again, I have to apologize for not being very quick to reply and the lack of reviews, but starting today Book Love Affair is back to normal. And there's quite a week planned. The full details will be out on in the Monday Coming Attractions post, but I will say that the Oath of Fealty giveaway winners will be announced tomorrow--and a new giveaway will be starting!

Want to know who won?
For this contest, there are:
- 3 copies of Numbers by Rachel Ward (hardcover)

The winners have 2 days to respond to my email me with his/her mailing address or they will be disqualified and an alternative winner chosen. Without further ado, I bring to you the randomly chosen winners:

The winners of Numbers by Rachel Ward are:

1. Donna/Dawn (Bookie) who's last YA read was: "Fire by Kristin Cashore. I liked it but not as much as Graceling." 2. Kristi who's last YA read was: "Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver - Great book - I would read it again!" 3. Brenda (misskallie2000) who's last YA read was: "Dream Girl. I enjoyed reading and have passed on to my grandaughter."

The Oath of Fealty giveaway is going on for one more day. After that ends, I'll be posting the next contest to celebrate 250 followers here at Book Love Affair, so keep watch!

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