I’ve fallen behind on reviews again. I think this may be a permanent state. At least it’s because I’ve been on a huge reading spree, so there’s that, only the spree was sadness induced so meh. I ended up with 18 books read not reviewed, so gonna try and group them together as mini-reviews. These are both not your usual urban fantasies. Alice is the badass taking cake of monsters around the city, but the story is also a portal fantasy and a retelling. Fred is not the badass, he doesn’t even want to be the badass, he wants to be his chill, boring, accountant self, but he’s thrown into the urban fantasy world of vampires and shapeshifters and all sorts of parahumans.
A Blade so Black by L.L. McKinney
The first time the Nightmares came, it nearly cost Alice her life. Now she’s trained to battle monstrous creatures in the dark dream realm known as Wonderland with magic weapons and hardcore fighting skills. Yet even warriors have a curfew.
Life in real-world Atlanta isn’t always so simple, as Alice juggles an overprotective mom, a high-maintenance best friend, and a slipping GPA. Keeping the Nightmares at bay is turning into a full-time job. But when Alice’s handsome and mysterious mentor is poisoned, she has to find the antidote by venturing deeper into Wonderland than she’s ever gone before. And she’ll need to use everything she’s learned in both worlds to keep from losing her head . . . literally.
This book was so much fun! I haven’t read (/listened/watched) an Alice in Wonderland retelling in a while, and it’s one of my favorite stories, I love the random mad world, and I really liked take on it, I think ass-kicking is always welcome. I really enjoyed the narration as well
I thought the mix of Alice in Wonderland and Buffy the Vampire Slayer was great, as was seeing how all the known Wonderlandians were reimagined as badasses. There was also some interesting history with the two queens. Also, nightmares as real things impacting the world is one of my favorite themes, though I would’ve preferred them a bit more mindfucky. I really want to read more in this setting.
I noticed some reviewers mentioning they’d have lacked more worldbuilding, but I never felt that way. Maybe because I’m such a fan of the Wonderland setting, and decided to watch Buffy while listening to this, but whenever something was mentioned I had no trouble conjuring up plenty of images.
Apparently I’m at an age where I relate more to moms than heroines in YA? Her mom is not overprotective, she is right! Alice had better pick up her phone now and then, and not skip school to almost get herself killed. Also, stop thinking about the much older dude, (but also keep on because I’m not your real mom). I dunno what I want.
Something that I really liked was Alice’s relationship with her BFF, the ups and downs it had on a strong background of caring for each other. That was always a focus. I wonder if we’ll get more of the secondary characters in the next books.
It ended interestingly and I’m looking forward to picking up the sequel.
r/fantasy bingo: Color in the title, audiobook
Tarot Black Lives Matter bingo:HIEROPHANT: coming of age or YA contemporary; LOVERS: featuring strong friendships or romance; EMPRESS: mother MC or mother-child relationship, possibly STRENGTH: action-adventure, I’m never sure with that square. It could go either urban fantasy or set in a secondary world due to the portaling, so I’m not sure I’d really count it for it either
The Utterly Uninteresting and Unadventurous Tales of Fred, the Vampire Accountant by Drew Hayes
Some people are born boring. Some live boring. Some even die boring. Fred managed to do all three, and when he woke up as a vampire, he did so as a boring one. Timid, socially awkward, and plagued by self-esteem issues, Fred has never been the adventurous sort.
One fateful night – different from the night he died, which was more inconvenient than fateful – Fred reconnects with an old friend at his high school reunion. This rekindled relationship sets off a chain of events thrusting him right into the chaos that is the parahuman world, a world with chipper zombies, truck driver wereponies, maniacal necromancers, ancient dragons, and now one undead accountant trying his best to “survive.” Because even after it’s over, life can still be a downright bloody mess.
I bought the audiobook of this ages ago and have been saving it for when I need a fun easy listen, and it delivered on that, it was fun and quick. I hate to damn with faint praise, but it was a solid OK. It’s good if you’re looking for a light no stress story, but I just didn’t find it that memorable.
This book is really a collection of short stories smushed together, which is fine, but I’ve had a few too many of these recently to really get excited at the concept. I think they could’ve been streamlined together a bit more, there were little recaps that felt out of place when published as a novel.
Fred is neat, ye olde boring account, who found himself turned into a vampire, and then just kept on being ye old boring accountant, just less alive. He’s a really fun “host” for a book, and his problem-solving methods, so different from most urban fantasy protagonists, is great. It’s great to have such a completely different take on vampires. Fred would love to be as unadventurous as the title suggests, but things don’t always work out that way and he’s somehow always dragged into danger.
r/fantasy Bingo: A Book that Made You Laugh, Graphic Novel or Audiobook