A Wandering WeyrCat...

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child - Parts One and Two by J.K. Rowling My rating: 4 of 5 stars Really enjoyed this. It's like a bit of Fan Fiction that let's us replay material from the originals, with a neat (but not hinted at) twist. Some people had trouble reading the format of a script, but I read a lot of Shakespeare in my youth and found I could jump right into the style without issue. It's not a terribly DEEP book, but does touch on the troubles of parents (living vicariously and overprotection) while telling a good short story. A quick, nostalgic read. View all my reviews

Welcome to Night Vale by Joseph Fink My rating: 3 of 5 stars (Note, I have not heard the podcast at the time of this reading.) I listened to the audiobook, which I've heard was easier to digest than the paperback. I think I'd prefer the audiobook too, because some eerie music and creative narration really lent depth to the story (and weirdness of Night Vale). It was a WEIRD a heartwarming story that, while failing Beschdel, managed to present strong independent women at very different stages of their life, while being both amusing and a little creepy. Though this book was proposed to me as a Horror, I don't feel it really this that category. In fact, I read it to satisfy the Horror category in the Goodreads.com 2016 Read Harder challenge and now need to decide if I should read another, scarier, horror novel. I'm glad I read it, and might pop in to the podcast, but it's definitely not something for everyone. Some nifty things I tho...

Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer My rating: 4 of 5 stars I'd been both interested and avoiding this series. Sounds like my sort of universe, but nervous about rooting for a villain. Irrational, probably, but we've all got lines. Read Harder 2016 pushed me to finally start it. The smart-alecky voice of the narrator kept me grinning as I read the book. The characters are pretty well written, better than I expected, honestly. Perhaps I didn't have much faith in a Middle Grade book, but the author doesn't talk down to the Middle Grade reader. The tone certain things are moderated, and the narrator actually quips about it.. mentioning an "adult" version of the 'report' the story represents. I liked the characters, I agreed with the plights and motivations of both sides. I adored the unique take on dwarves (I don't think I'll ever look at Gimli the same way again!). It's always nice to see a fresh perspective on ...

Suicide Squad, Vol. 1: Kicked in the Teeth by Adam Glass My rating: 3 of 5 stars I like the art and colors. Harley's costume is a bit, well, impractical. Do you know how often you have to pull-up corsets if you do anything besides stand still? I can see wanting to update the harlequin suit, but this is a bit too far in the opposite direction for me. I don't like that they changed her origin. Oh, every time they do it they change it just a little (it's been angling more in the Legitimate-Doctor direction, which I'm fine with) but Joker's new add-on takes away Harley's agency. Before she was batsh*t of her own accord, and though we see her a little batsh*t (a nice start, perhaps), I think Joker's push was unnecessary. I like that the Squad dynamic gives the writers a way to cycle team members, so it gives them a nice way to keep the missions and team interactions fresh. The last issue in this volume... is a nice cliffhanger,...

The Life List by Lori Nelson Spielman My rating: 2 of 5 stars I read the first half by paperback and the second by audiobook. I don't recommend the audiobook version; the narrator has a stilted and uneven cadence that made the novel sound less well written than it was. The book WAS pretty well written. It wasn't my style of novel, I was asked to read it by a friend. It was like watching a lifetime movie, or a live-action Disney movie, where people keep telling the princess that she can't always get everything she wants, but she clearly is. I'm usually happy to have a character second guess themselves, but she dives between extreme self-doubt and this unwavering faith in her death mother that the mother is painted to be as omnipotent as a god. The mother might actually BE an analogy for God, and the Life List an analogy for the Ten Commandments. If you told me right now "that was the exact point" I would believe you. The mess...