Review: Never Ever After

Never Ever After by Sue Lynn Tan
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Narrated by Natalie Naudus
Presented by Hachette Audio

This was great fun, if a little predictable and slightly too long. Some great characters, and the setting is gorgeous.

Yet another Cinderella re-telling, but this one weaves in some beautiful Chinese mythology to make it unique. Our protagonist, Yining, has a ring stolen by her evil step-aunt, and trying to get it back sees her tangling with a handsome prince. Add in a handsome adviser and political machinations and we're off and running.

I really enjoyed this at the beginning, but as with many audiobooks, I eventually found my mind wandering. I think I'm getting a little tired of fairytale retellings and romance cliches, though, so this was more a me thing, I think.

The writing is actually done well, and there are some really unique ideas here, so it's not boring by any means. It's stretched out, though, and eventually feels overly dramatic.

The romance side of things was nice and tame - just how I like it. Mostly suggestion and innuendo, but with some great character development as the driving force. I enjoyed it for the most part, though as mentioned, the cliches get a bit tiresome.

The narrator did a great job of defining voices and keeping the tone interesting. She had a great pace and cadence for this one. I'd easily listen to her narration again.

There's plenty of action and adventure, and it's a beautiful setting. I think readers who have enjoyed this author's previous work should really enjoy this offering; in general, I think fans of fantasy will still get a kick out of this one.

With thanks to NetGalley for an audio ARC

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Review: Spiderlight

Spiderlight by Adrian Tchaikovsky
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

DNF @ 23%

I've just been dragging my feet on this one for too long so I'm finally giving up.

I think the story just hasn't been that interesting to me so far, and the characters don't really stand out enough to be rooting for them yet. There hasn't been a lot of world building to get me immersed in the world, and I think a spider-turned-human is just a little too odd to wrap my head around.

This was my first dabble into Tchaikovsky's fantasy and it was a bit disappointing, to be honest. He does tend to have a complicated, stilted sort of writing style, and while it worked for the sci-fi series of his that I read and enjoyed, it just doesn't bring any kind of fun to this lighthearted fantasy story.

I think those who have more patience with overblown writing may appreciate this more, but it's just not worth the effort to me any more.

With thanks to NetGalley for an ARC

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Review: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Original Motion Picture Special Edition: 35th Anniversary

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Original Motion Picture Special Edition: 35th Anniversary by Peter Laird
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

I'm a serious outlier here, because I thought it kinda sucked.

The artwork is childish and flat, with hideous faces and a lack of detail that makes the characters look freakish. Very reminiscent of the bad drawings I used to do on MS Paint as a kid, where you then just fill the colour with a click. The panels are cramped and the writing more so, and just so much of it!

It's been a long time since I saw the film, and I wanted to feel the nostalgia but I just couldn't get past the hideous presentation. I'm a big TMNT fan so it feels a little like blasphemy saying so, but I just did not enjoy this. The massive, central watermark on the NetGalley digital copy didn't help, either.

The bonus sketch pages at the back were kinda cool, but to me it also kinda showed that the faces hadn't changed all that much from the original rough sketches. It's always cool to see an artist's process, though, so fans of the comic format should get a kick out of it.

Sadly, this was a massive disappointment to me. I'll stick to the new stuff, I think!

With thanks to NetGalley for an e-ARC

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Review: Wonder Woman: Blood and Guts: DC Compact Comics Edition

Wonder Woman: Blood and Guts: DC Compact Comics Edition by Brian Azzarello
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was everything I wanted from a WW story - mythology, mystery and mayhem. Just a shame this is only half the story, and the rest is out of print!

This opens brilliantly - straight into the blood and guts the title promises! The action is full on but not without reason, and it delivers Greek mythology in a new and interesting way that allows these gods to interact with Diana, daughter of Hippolyta.

There's an intriguing story about the fate of an unborn child, and the conniving gods make things very interesting and naturally dramatic.

So yes, very much my kind of story!

Diana is depicted in a style new to me, but I really enjoyed it and the artist interpretations of the gods really fascinated me. There is plenty of detail, and the action is clean and easy to follow.

This is definitely one of my favourite Wonder Woman stories so far, so I'll definitely be recommending it!

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Review: Batman by Grant Morrison Book One

Batman by Grant Morrison Book One by Grant Morrison
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Strong opening with some great stories, but also kinda messy and hard to follow in places.

The main plot of this volume is the introduction of Damian - Batman's rebellious son. He's feisty and ready to claim his place as Robin, and won't let current Robin Tim Drake stand in his way. But he's still got a lot to learn!

Morrison crafts some really interesting stories, but some of them can be a little hard to follow. There's a completely, unrelated-to-anything story in the middle that was actually my favourite part, but it comes out of nowhere and disappears equally fast, bookended by Damian Drama.

Still, even with the sometimes-chaotic storylines, it was a really fun read, and I'm keen to move on to the next volume. The artwork is glorious, though sometimes story is lost to style. Some clever devices used, but some just didn't translate the story too well.

On the whole, it's a pretty strong entry into the world of Batman, so well worth the read.

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Review: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Naruto

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Naruto by Caleb Goellner
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was absolutely nothing special but absolutely a lot of fun if you like both of these franchises.

My favourite thing was the ridiculous cross-named strikes, which of course I cannot remember but please trust me, they were fun and dumb.

Some gorgeous splash pages of turtles and ninjas.

A very thin plot, but that's not really what we came for, is it?

Just a fun little crossover event that sees them first battle, then team up. Neither side proves to be stronger than the other, so all fans can leave happy. And seeing Mikey and Naruto fight side by side? Hell yes. THIS is what we came for.

A fun story if you don't take it too seriously.

With thanks to NetGalley for approving digital ARC

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Review: Doctor Fate by J.M. DeMatteis

Doctor Fate by J.M. DeMatteis by J.M. DeMatteis
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Mostly long and tedious, but some interesting moments and fun characters.

This was recommended by a friend who LOVED it, but he and I have very different opinions.

I think the main appeal of this one is that there are just not a lot of Dr Fate stories out there. This was a nice hefty run from DeMatteis, but it focuses on his own new version of Fate, rather than Kent Nelson. Kent's there, but he's taking the backseat as the cranky mentor here.

First and foremost, I had a problem with the new incarnation of Fate. This time around, Fate is two people, whose love allows them to bond and be stronger together. The relationship between the two was too weird for me, so I found their love more disturbing than powerful.

Then there's also the fact that they actually don't work well together. They're constantly bickering and mess things up because they can't agree on how to control Fate. Everything about their relationship feels forced and uncomfortable.

But!

There are some great supporting characters, by which I mean Petey, the demon-dog. Without him, my rating would be generous at one star. He is the main reason I was able to stick with it and get through the whole 700+ pages. Kent also was entertaining, as were some of the villains.

For the most part, I found the whole thing tiresome and odd. When non-Jesus showed up, I basically lost all respect.

This is a hefty slog that will really only appeal to those desperate for a solo Dr Fate tale. It takes a lot of work to get through, and while there are some entertaining moments almost none of them revolve around what Dr Fate is doing.

Ultimately, this was a disappointment that I wouldn't recommend unless you're specifically after a Dr Fate solo outing.

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