Lumberjanes: Bonus Tracks

Lumberjanes: Bonus Tracks is the collected volume of Lumberjanes one-shot special issues. I didn't really know what to expect when I picked this book up. I bought it because it (and Volume 4 of the main story) were what was available in the comic book shop. I'm glad I did grab this book, though, as it exceeded my expectations.

The Lumberjanes short stories collected for the first time in paperback!

Join April, Jo, Mal, Molly and Ripley as they explore their all-girls camp. From ghost ponies to strange plants, these Lumberjanes are ready to take on anything that comes their way as long as they have each other.

Once I overcame the slight weirdness of seeing different artists draw familiar characters in slightly different ways — exacerbated by the fact that I had just read one of the regular volumes — I really enjoyed the short stories presented here. This volume contains five stories written and illustrated by different creators. Each is a self-contained story and they don't require very much prior knowledge of the series except for the general setting. I think there were a couple of very minor references to events in Lumberjanes issues I haven't read, but the plot certainly didn't hinge on them.

It's not a terrible sampler to get an idea of whether you want to read more Lumberjanes, even if the writers are not the regulars. That said, I think readers will get a little bit more enjoyment out of Bonus Tracks if they've read a bit of Lumberjanes before, since these stories do none of the work of establishing setting or character (which makes sense, given the context). I don't want to say much about the content of the stories since they're so short it would feel like spoilers; I think the blurb says enough. However, I will note that my favourite story was the one written by Holly Black, "Faire and Square", but it was a very close race between all of them.

I highly recommend this volume to fans of Lumberjanes. As far as I can tell, it can be inserted anywhere in your Lumberjanes journey and still be enjoyable.

4.5 / 5 stars

First published: 2018 (for the collected volume), Boom! Studios
Series: Lumberjanes, non-series one-shots
Format read: Trade paperback
Source: Local comic book shop

The Iron Trial by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare

The Iron Trial by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare is the first in a new series of fantasy books for middle grade/younger readers (as in pre-YA). It is, in a nutshell, about twelve-year-olds going to a secret underground magic school in the US.

Most kids would do anything to pass the Iron Trial.

Not Callum Hunt. He wants to fail.

All his life, Call has been warned by his father to stay away from magic. If he succeeds at the Iron Trial and is admitted into the Magisterium, he is sure it can only mean bad things for him.

So he tries his best to do his worst - and fails at failing.

Now the Magisterium awaits him. It's a place that's both sensational and sinister, with dark ties to his past and a twisty path to his future.

The Iron Trial is just the beginning, for the biggest test is still to come . . .

Because of the contemporary setting plus magic school element, comparisons to Harry Potter are inevitable. Aside from the starting age group, the fact that there is a school for magic, and the gender distribution of the three main-est characters, there's very little the two series have in common. The type of magic and the structure of the school are completely different. Instead of going to a series of different classes, the students are apprenticed to a master in small groups of five or less. That and the different type of magic make for a very different dynamic.

Black and Clare throw in some nice twists on the standard formula... which I can't go into detail about without spoiling, but they were my favourite part. My least favourite part was probably the "twelve-year-olds are stupid" aspect, but this wasn't especially prominent. However, I will say that I felt The Iron Trial was less apt to transcend it's target audience than the last middle grade book I read, which was a bit unfortunate. I listened to it as an audiobook borrowed from the library and, while I'm glad I didn't request an ARC and feel obliged to read it, I am interested in what happens next. There were some interesting things towards the end, particularly, which certainly made me want to see how it all works out. I will probably read the sequel in some form at some point.

I should also mention that the main character, Call, was injured as a baby in circumstances such that one of his legs never properly healed. Now he has a limp and his leg causes him chronic pain. I felt this was well incorporated into the narrative to show both realistic limitations and the fact that Call hated to let it stop him from doing anything. The story (so far, anyway) would have worked just as well without it, so it struck me as a nice inclusion.

The Iron Trial was a reasonable read. My dislike mainly stems from not being the target audience (I like YA, but younger books don't usually do it for me), which I knew going in. I would definitely recommend it to younger teens and pre-teens who like fantasy books (and perhaps are Harry Potter fans but have run out of those books to read).

4 / 5 stars

First published: September 2014, Scholastic (Audiobook narrated by Paul Boehmer)
Series: Magisterium book 1 of 5
Format read: Audiobook
Source: Borrowed from library

Doctor Who: Lights Out by Holly Black

Doctor Who: Lights Out by Holly Black is a novelette released as a sort of addendum to the 50th anniversary celebrations of Doctor Who. This story will also be available in the 12 Stories, 12 Doctors anthology. It's a story about the Twelfth Doctor (in case you didn't recognise the silhouette).

This story is in first person, which I was a bit surprised by at first and it took me a while to get into it. The latter not just because of the voice but because it takes a few pages to become interesting. Basically once the Doctor appears and people start mysteriously dying.

Once it gets going this is a thoughtful story in keeping with some of the themes the Twelfth Doctor's first season has been exploring. It's a quick read — only 36 pages in the (non-standard because ARC) format I read it — but it was an entertaining enough one.

I would recommend Doctor Who: Lights Out to Doctor Who fans and anyone wanting to get a taste for licensed Doctor Who fiction. It's an interesting step in my experimentation with the subgenre.

4 / 5 stars

First published: October 2014, Puffin / BBC
Series: Doctor Who, 12 Stories, 12 Doctors and it's about the 12th Doctor.
Format read: eARC
Source: Publisher via NetGalley

Black Heart by Holly Black

Black Heart by Holly Black is the third and final instalment of the Curse Workers trilogy. You can read my reviews of book one, White Cat, and book two, Red Glove, at those links.

The series is a really good read. If you haven’t read it yet, I highly recommend it. Go read my review of White Cat if you’re not sure or want to know more. Otherwise, grab a hold of the books if you like fantasy YA.

Black Heart picks up not long after Red Glove left off. I enjoyed it a lot. It’s difficult to review this book without spoilers for the previous books. My review doesn’t contain spoilers for Black Heart, but if you haven’t read White Cat or Red Glove, you probably shouldn’t read the rest of the review. Best to start at my review of White Cat. So be warned, spoilers ahead!

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…

SPOILERS FOR THE PREVIOUS BOOKS IN THE SERIES.

NOT SPOILERS FOR BLACK HEART.

BUT STILL, SPOILERS FOR WHITE CAT AND RED GLOVE.

YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

…

~

After Cassel’s deal with the Feds at the end of Red Glove, his life takes a different turn. He tries to balance staying on at boarding school with meetings with the Feds that he has to keep secret from his family and the crime boss who also wants his services. Sounds complicated, right?

It was delightfully complex with several plot threads intertwined. Lots of people are constantly demanding things from Cassel — time, grades, help — and it’s written in such a way that the reader can sympathise with the stress he’s under without feeling confused.

One thing I found particularly interesting is that throughout the book I wasn’t entirely sure what choice Cassel would make for the direction of rest of his life. He has several options and many obstacles and disasters to dodge whichever path he chooses. While the ending isn’t a complete surprise, I didn’t find it telegraphed or obvious, which is nice.

Cassel’s friends, Sam and Daneca, play a more important role in Black Heart than in earlier books. From book one through to book three they shift from background to foreground characters. On the one hand, it means they’re being inadvertently drawn into Cassel’s world of cons. It’s an extra source of guilt for him, and also raises the stakes. (And they’re also really not the only thing he has to worry about.)

If you’ve enjoyed the earlier books in the series, this is more of the same but better. It’s more complicated, there’s more mystery (not so much just one main mystery like in Red Glove), and the cons are more elaborate and dangerous.

It’s an excellent book and a great conclusion to an excellent series. I highly recommend it.

4.5 / 5 stars

Red Glove by Holly Black

Red Glove by Holly Black is the sequel to White Cat, which I read and reviewed recently. This review doesn’t contain spoilers for Red Glove, but it does contain spoilers for White Cat. It’s the kind of book you can’t properly talk about without mentioning events at the end of the prequel. So if you haven’t read White Cat, don’t read on unless you like spoilers.

SPOILERS FOR WHITE CAT FOLLOW,

NOT SPOILERS FOR RED GLOVE.

BUT DON’T READ ON IF YOU HAVEN’T READ WHITE CAT AND DISLIKE BEING SPOILED.

YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

~

…

…

…

~

Right, that should be enough of a break. Also, I’m including the UK/Aus cover of Red Glove, because I like it more, even though I bought the cheaper US version.

Cassel is a high school senior at a fancy private boarding school in New Jersey. He is also a worker of magic. In a world where all workers are criminalised and feared, he has recently discovered that he has one of the rarest and most prized brands of magic. (That was the spoiler, by the way.) As he starts his senior year, his life takes some interesting turns, precipitated but not telegraphed by events in the first book.

His mother is out of gaol and back to causing mischief, Feds are breathing down his neck and he has confusing relationships with just about everyone in his life. At the start of the novel, he has very little idea what he’s going to do with his life.

I don’t want to simplify it by calling Red Glove a coming-of-age story because I suspect that’s what the overall arc of the trilogy will be. However, it is about Cassel choosing what sort of person he will be. In White Cat he learnt about what sort of person he could be, but now he’s in a position to choose for himself. I have to admit, I wasn’t entirely sure what he’d choose until he did.

Like White Cat, there’s also an element of mystery in the background that Cassel has to solve. It’s not a mystery novel by a long shot, but I like the extra layer. Cassel has to actually work to find out what’s going on (and fix it), which is better than the truth falling into his lap and him just reacting. This element is a strength of this series.

I enjoyed Red Glove about as much as White Cat (but it gets an extra half-star for ephemeral reasons which may ultimately relate to it not being consumed in audiobook form). Cassel is still a sneaky con artist but a lot more things went wrong in his cons and in his life than in the first book. It was entertaining watching him talk his way out of tricky situations. He did spend a lot of the book suffering existential angst to various degrees, which I thought Holly Black handled well. Too often is existential angst done tediously.

If you’ve read and enjoyed White Cat, I definitely recommend reading Red Glove. It’s basically more of the same. If you haven’t read White Cat, then start there. It’s not quite as necessary as with some series, but skipping the first book would definitely diminish the experience.

4.5 / 5 stars

White Cat by Holly Black

A while ago, Holly Black had some sort of promotion which involved giving away the audiobook of White Cat. That was the edition I consumed.

What Cat is a quirky YA fantasy book set in more or less the modern world, but with a class of magic workers (also referred to as curse workers or just workers) who everyone is a little scared of and whose practice of magic is generally outlawed (unless they work for the government).

Cassel comes from a worker family in which he is the only one without any abilities. This causes some tension between him and other members of his family, particularly his older brothers. Really, his brotherly relations aren’t terribly good for other reasons and his family has many issues. For example, his grandfather is a deathworker with death-blackened finger stumps and his mother is in gaol for getting caught conning a rich guy with her emotion magic.

Bereft of magic, Cassel is at a good boarding school, happily conning rich fellow students out of their pocket money. One night, he sleep walks onto the dorm roof for no reason anyone can easily explain. Things go downhill from there.

The story is a journey of discovery for Cassel, learning about how he fits into his family, about his past and about friendship. Of course, it’s book one in a trilogy, so not quite everything is explored as fully as I expect it will be by the end. There aren’t any loose ends, however, and no cliffhanger, which is always nice. There’s enough fodder for the next book but it’s not entirely obvious to me which direction it will go in. I do plan to pick up the second book as soon as possible (which is after I finish one more book because of my book buying restrictions).

My favourite aspect was the lying and conning of Cassel. Even though he wasn’t as good at is as he thought, I appreciated the clever plans and webs of lies. I hope that aspect doesn’t change too much in the later books.

Overall an interesting and enjoyable read/listen. I would recommend it to anyone who likes fantasy or who likes their YA a little bit different. (At least, I don’t think I’ve read anything similar recently.) And for the record, the narrator for the audiobook wasn’t annoying, which is always a bonus.

4 / 5 stars.