Amazon discontinued the ability to create images using their SiteStripe feature and in their infinite wisdom broke all previously created images on 12/31/23. Many blogs used this feature, including this one. Expect my archives to be a hot mess of broken book cover images until I can slowly comb through 20 years of archives to make corrections.

Saturday, April 7, 2007

Free At Last, Free At Last!

Thank God Almighty! The Boyfriend and I spent all day being lazy slugs, so I forced myself to finish For A Few Demons More by Kim Harrison. I'm free! Free to read something else! Here's my 30 second review:
Newbies = spend 450+ pages confused
Fans = will probably love it although a secondary character dies
My grade? Since I'm a newbie it landed in my D range. Plus, I had such an unpleasant experience trying to read this book, the first book in the series, Dead Witch Walking, will likely get weeded from the TBR. I'm unreasonable like that. Too many years of reading mystery novels, I just expect series books to stand alone.

11 comments:

Laura said...

Hey, I've read them all and I still had to refresh my memory. This series has been a hit or miss for me; FAFDM is the first hardback, and I think the last of this series that I'll buy. My personal favorite character is completely dead now, and I don't really appreciate the "cliffhanger"
did-she-or-didn't-she ending.

LinM said...

I've read the entire backlist but I'd decided not to buy FAFDM. I'm tired of series without a definite story arc (except for mysteries which are a beast of a different colour). However, fictionwise had this one available with a 100% rebate so I caved in but I still haven't made it past chapter 3. Damn Laura - now I have to skim through the rest to find out who died - probably the obvious. Wendy, I've read all of the previous books but have no quarrel with the grade.

LinM said...

Applesauce - I wanted to preview and add to that before it posted. Word verification reducing spam - VG; my ability to handle word verification - F.

Anyway, I like mystery series where each book does stand-alone. But I also like SFF where a series is usually a continuing story and generally not stand-alone. But even in an SFF series when I can't find the first book(s), I always skip the horrible back story pages and manage to find my way. So it is a huge weakness when a book is totally dependent on the volumes that came before.

Wendy said...

Laura:
Yeah, I think fans will follow the story better than I did - but that ending. Whoa doggie! Probably more than a few unhappy readers. It didn't bother me though since I spent the vast majority of the book completely lost and wasn't invested in any of the characters.

LinM: The lack of story arc was very frustrating here, because I think if there had been more "plot" I could have muddled my way through better. As it was, if I didn't have to review this I wouldn't have made it past the first chapter.

And I know - word verification is a PITA, and I'd shut it off but I tend to get spammed every time I post about an erotica novel....

Devon said...

Who dies? Pretty please?

I've had a mixed experience with this series. Some I loved, some I thought were booorrring. I like it well enough, but wasn't too invested in it. I don't like Rachel enough.

I was going to take it out of the library anyway.

Rosie said...

Breathe the fresh air, feel the sun on your face! I'm glad you survived the book.

I OTOH have been gorging on Rock Creek Six. I finished Rico late last night. I think I'm going to take a mid-point break and read something else before reading the last three.

Wendy said...

Devon:
E-mail me (there's a link on my side bar) and I'll tell you. Don't want to post it here for fear of spoiling it for somebody who doesn't want to be spoiled.

Rosie: I hope you're enjoying the series! It's funny, but the last three books are probably my favorites! Many consider Rico the weak link in the series, but that was the one I read first (I reviewed it, then went out and bought the other 5 books), so I have a bit of a soft spot for him.

RandomRanter said...

I haven't read this one, but I agree with the general idea that if I don't like enough on it's own, then it's not for me.

Rosie said...

Wendy, as you know I'm reading RCS books in order. So far I loved Sullivan. Reese was just good, but I liked Sullivan better. Thanks for the heads up on that, BTW. Rico is my favorite character in everyone else's book. I just really like who he is. His story was fine but I had a hard time warming up to Lily. Jed is next. That looks interesting. I've read just a few pages on the stage coach and they are about to be robbed.

I'm still on my mid-point break and should return to the series by week's end.

Wendy said...

Rosie:
Jed was the story I thought I was going to like the least (mainly because I *thought* he was the least interesting guy), but I really ended up loving his story. Gah, now I want to do a reread and who the heck has the time?

Devon said...

Wendy, thanks for the offer. It was at work today, so I checked it out. I flipped to the ends to see who gets it. I'm mildly disappointed, but not surprised. I had suspected that...was not long for that world.

I feel your pain BTW. I read the first chapter, and it takes awhile to get into the swing of things even for someone who has read them. If I had never read one before, I couldn't get into it.