So the new Paperspaceships site design is live (hooray!), and although it’s not completely finished yet, I must say it’s looking super crispy – thanks Rufus.

I am currently charging through a copy of Robert V.S. Redick’s The Red Wolf Conspiracy, a book I purchased based on good reviews… and so far, so good. I think we may have a winner here. A review will be up… oh yeah.

So I’m taking a little vacation (I really really need it) starting Sunday night, meaning I will probably be incommunicado for a week, but I will be coming back reloaded – hopefully. Look for reviews of Mockingjay, the final book in the Hunger Games trilogy, as well as The Desert Spear, Peter V. Brett’s sequel to the awesome debut The Warded Man.

Last but not least, I am really trying to get myself back into writing short stories again. I’ve been drafting up a novel I’ve had tumbling around in my head lately (part of the reason for my absence) and I need some polish and practice to get the wheels moving on it. I plan on posting one (broken into parts) in the very near future. Until then, adios astronauts, see you very soon.

The story follows the two semi-estranged Kane siblings, Sadie and Carter, as they take on a quest to stop the Egyptian god Set, who was released by their father. To save their father who has been banished by Set, they must travel across the world and find out the secret to their family’s history that dates back to the time of the pharaohs.

I’ll be picking this up the day it comes out. Why? Because I’m very interested to see if this book lives up to Percy Jackson. I could be totally wrong (and I hope I am), but I have a feeling it’ll fall short by quite a bit.

Not to say that Percy Jackson is a great piece of literature, because it isn’t. But it’s entertaining, clever, and better than a lot of IR/YA stuff out there. I always really liked Percy Jackson because of the integration and adaptation of the Greek myths into our world today–some of the ways the Greek ideas/people were modernized were pretty clever, and I really enjoyed that. Plus the story was, like I said, entertaining and there were quite a few times where I was caught by surprise by a plot twist.

I’m hoping that this novel will be a step up for Riordan, that his characters will be stronger and his detail more flushed out, but at the same time I’m worried about him churning another one out so quickly after such a successful series.. sometimes that’s the perfect recipe for failure.

Silver Borne is the fifth novel in the Mercy Thompson series, and according to Patricia Briggs, will be focused mostly on Samuel, Mercy’s former flame and roommate as he continues to lose what all werewolves lose as they get older: the will to live. It will also deal with a certain magical item Mercy had in her possession that apparently she’s not supposed to. Can this chick ever stay out of trouble?

Silver Borne drops March 30th in hardcover. Mark your calendars.

If you’ve never read the Hunger Games and Catching Fire (and I hope you have, because we can’t be friends if you haven’t) it’s an incredible young adult trilogy set in a dystopian futuristic world, Panem. Twelve outlying districts are ruled by the Capital. Sometime in the past, the districts (there were thirteen at the time) revolted against the Capital and lost. Because of this, the Capital asserts its dominance over the districts by holding the Hunger Games every year as a constant punishment and reminder of their place. Every year, each district must hold a lottery to pick one female and one male from ages 12 – 18 to participate in the games. All of the tributes are taken to the capital, put through training, given a story and a distinct look, and then dumped in a fabricated arena to fight against the other tributes to their death. The last one standing wins the Capital’s favor in yearly rations to their district.

The first book follows Katniss as she volunteers herself in place of her younger sister, Prim. From the start, she fights against the Capital, defying them multiple times in the preparations for the games and in the games themselves. Considering it’s a trilogy, I don’t think it’s too much of a spoiler to acknowledge that she wins the games in the end, much to the Capital’s disdain. I’m leaving quite a bit of plot out here, so don’t yell at me for giving the ending away (because I really didn’t ).

The thing I find incredible about this book is that I can see this happening. It’s the whole idea of fascination of the abomination. Some might argue that at this moment in time, human civilization is too advanced and, well, civilized to be interested in watching fellow humans fight to death in such a brutal fashion. But I don’t agree. Look at the Romans.. they were the most civilized and advanced society at the time, and they reveled in their gladiator games. People like to think they’re too good for that, but when an accident happens on the road, no one doesn’t look. It’s in our nature to be fascinated with death, despair, and struggle. I’m not saying I want to sit around and watch people fight to the death all day, but you can’t deny the reality of human nature.

Beyond that. Character development, action, suspense.. it’s all there. And done beautifully. I guarantee you, if you pick up the Hunger Games you’ll be finished with Catching Fire less than a week later and aching for Mockingjay. It’s that good.

Normally.

Mercy Thompson is an entirely different story. From the first book, Moon Called, up to the latest, Bone Crossed, Patricia Briggs has blended all the above mentioned characteristics into a character so confounding yet unique that I find myself endeared to her, even when I want to shake her.

Did I mention that she’s a tatted up shape-shifting mechanic?

The Mercy Thompson series takes place in modern day Washington State, in a world where the existence of faeries (called fae) and magic has been revealed to the general public. Mercy runs an auto shop with Zee, a cranky old German who is actually a fae in disguise. She lives next door to Adam, the local pack leader of the werewolves in the area, and is her off and on again romantic interest. Mercy is able to change into a coyote  (her shape-shifting powers coming from her Native American father), and as the series moves along we start to learn that there are perhaps more powers that Mercy isn’t aware she possesses.

What makes her character so great – and infuriating – is that the same qualities that irk you are the same ones that drive most of her actions, and that stays consistent throughout the series. Credit Patricia Briggs for not contriving a bunch of bullshit reasons for Mercy’s motives; it usually takes you about two seconds to realize why she decides to put herself in harm’s way constantly. Sometimes I want to shout at her for doing these things, and other times I just shrug and say “well, that’s just Mercy”. Its really an accomplishment for a writer when you can write a character and have her evoke that kind of response from a reader.

The tattoos don't hurt her case either.

Bone Crossed is the fourth book in the series, and it picks up after some major shit has gone down in Mercy’s life in the last novel. She’s trying to just get back to life as usual when a friend drops in unannounced and with a warning – Mercy’s really pissed off the local head of the vampires with her antics in previous books, and now she has to pay for it. Another great thing about these books is that they are short, but they all blend seamlessly together if you read them one after another. If you’re interested with checking out the series, Moon Called is where to start. Surprisingly, I would say I liked it the least just because it spends a lot of time introducing you to the world and the hierarchy of the wolves – I would call it a necessary evil – but in the end it enriches the story of all the later books because you have the lay of the land. Bone Crossed has just hit paperback and the fifth book Silver Borne, drops sometime in March.

What follows is an animation that serves as the introduction to Rob Bryanton’s book Imagining the Tenth Dimension in which we take an animated stroll through the possible dimensions: the first all the way to the tenth. It is probably the most accessible introduction to string theory and understanding the multiple dimensions I’ve encountered yet. It’s elegantly designed and animated, and also gets props for giving a pretty good mention of Flatland (if you don’t know what that is, you need to learn and fast). As essentially a trailer for the book it worked, it made me want to read it so job done. Congrats.

Gregor believes Cat is his and he won’t stop until he has her. As the battle begins between the vamp who haunts her nightmares and the one who holds her heart, only Cat can break Gregor’s hold over her. She’ll need all the power she can summon in order to bring down the baddest bloodsucker she’s ever faced . . . even if getting that power will result in an early grave…

Jeaniene Frost’s newest book in her Night Huntress Series, Destined for an Early Grave, is coming out on Tuesday, the 28th.  So get excited!  Now in preparation for the launch of her newest book, let’s review her previous ones (small spoiler alert!):

Halfway to the Grave, Book 1: Cat, a half-vampire, is doing her best to wipe all the undead off the face of the earth.  But she  meets her match in Bones, the powerful vampire who trains her.

One Foot in the Grave, Book 2: Four years later, Cat is the leader a team of secret government agents fighting undead crime.  She hasn’t seen Bones since the end of Book 1 (read it and find out why!).  But when Bones shows up unexpectedly and tells her of the price on her head, theyhave to work together to find man who wants her dead.

At Grave’s End, Book 3: Cat has a problem.  She’s known throughout the vampire world as the “Red Reaper” (how cool of a nickname is that?), and the very vampires she’s trying to stop recognize her and run.  So now Cat has to come up with a new disguise, and help Bones fight an ancient evil.

This series is way more complicated–and awesome–than it sounds above.  But If you’re still hesitant, let me tell you why I like it.

Obviously, I’m a girl.  And as I girl, I love kick-ass heroines.  Cat may be a killer, but she’s also dedicated to doing right, eliminating the world from evil, and all that stuff we want in our fantasy series.  She’s a heroine with just enough flaws that we can can empathize with her, but with enough power and bravery that we still admire her.

And Cat is not only strong, fast, and deadly, she also has the handsome master vampire Bones by her side.  Their relationship is a huge selling point for me–it’s funny and sweet, but also romantic.

The books are fast-paced and packed with action, with plenty of quirky supporting characters to keep it real.  Check out Jeaniene’s newest book here:

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and let me know what you think!