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Kara's life is in chaos, so she moves in with her uncle, taking up residence in his museum of curiosities. Her timing is great, for an onslaught of horror is imminent! This is a great tale if you like characters who take that unwise extra last step. Good story, brilliant characters, well-executed fun.

This was my favorite Butcher novel so far. It is relentless, pushing the drama to the last page. There is lots of satisfaction in the tale, including major plot twists with Thomas and Anastasia, both of which will make Dresden's future life much more complicated. There are great magic battles and character deaths, after transformations that make them into real losses. All the standard characters excel. Harry, though, surprises again and again.

Great story and well told!

Thomas the vamp is one of my favorite characters in the series. Seeing Harry from his pov in this short tale was quite a lot of fun.

What a funny book. It is hard to give it a fair rating, but the research alone (pure geek glory) is worth a 4-star rating. There is so much to love about the setting and the pace, but the characters are often annoying, their humor so sophomoric. It's basically a quest story, where poor Wade, who lives in a trailer park where the trailers are stacked on each other (The Stacks), seeks the all-powerful rule and riches of the deceased inventor of the Oasis. As such, the story follows the quest, and Wade becomes better for the challenges he faces, learning to live a fuller life.

It's a cool story, even though (I can't stress this enough) Wade is sometimes so incredibly annoying. You have been warned.

Ng's storytelling chops are downright amazing. The story is interleaved, starting near the end, a senseless event, and the rest of the story follows, making sense of the inexplicable. Along the way, we learn about Mia & Pearl, outsiders in this "perfect" community, and the Richardsons, the McCulloughs, and a desperate mother who wants her baby back. Ng shows us all of them, their best and their worst, letting the reader draw their own conclusions, though it's clear who the author favors in the outcome. Still, we are asked to feel compassion even for the villains, and know them so well, understanding how they have failed themselves and those they love, it is not so much to ask.

Cummins has written a riveting, well-researched story about the experience of Mexican migrants from their pov. It is a good story and well told. The characters have a level of complexity that avoid simple stereotypes.

That being said, there are some annoying stylistic issues, including head-hopping that becomes distracting. Nevertheless, Cummins's storytelling is solid and the subject matter--how easily life can collapse in a lawless society where narco traffickers command such authority, where there is so much corruption and even casual conversations with the wrong people, do leave you vulnerable--is timely and vital. I enjoyed the story more than the execution.

Quite an achievement! A full survey of some now quite hard-to-find books, many of which I've had the pleasure to read. Some have not made it to ebooks, so paperback is the only way to find them. The historical context of the stories reveals much about the publishing industry chasing fads, and the notes in the glossary are brilliant. There is a lot of information here I would not know how else to find.

So good. OMG.

Like a b horror film, this book appears to have few ambitions other than a fun slashfest, so it is a real surprise to be reading a great character story about real people with real problems. These are relatable characters in extraordinary moments who rise to the challenge. It's fun, a lot of fun, comedy even, but there is terror here too.

Homo Gestalt. What a concept!

Sexton does these multigenerational moving snapshots that lend complexity to her characters. It is a very effective strategy for showing the reasons for their actions, how the synchronicity exists beyond even the story. I really fell in love with the characters, and not just the women, but TC and Renard. Terry is also a complex character of a man in recovery. I've seen other reviewers depict these men as weak (especially in contrast to the women), but that's a very shallow take. They are playing their cards the best they can.

In any case, Sexton is just brilliant here. I loved the magic of The Revisionists, but this novel is even more approachable and packs a solid punch. Great read!