Book Reviews by Ehlen Administration

I’ll be honest and say in general poetry isn’t my thing. I like a good, thought out poem occasionally, but have never devoted my time to reading volumes of poetry. That said, I really enjoy reading poetry occasionally particularly when it offers insight on a particular subject that prose doesn’t quite capture as effectively. I found Wiskup’s anthology had some excellent selections and some very mediocre, but the poems that I was most drawn had the anti-establishment vibe, even more than specifically supernatural themed, which was what I assumed would be the focus based on the title of the anthology. I tend to push right past poetry with love as the subject, because it’s overdone and often very specific to the author and situation, although I did enjoy some of the scans of the original, handwritten work (I’m kind of a process nerd that way.) But some of the anti-establishment poetry really evoked a lyrical quality reminiscent of 70’s protest songs. Those seemed more natural and free f...

Mother of Darkwaters: Book one of the Vessel series by Tony C. Skye My rating: 3 of 5 stars Dealing with your boyfriend’s tragic death in a car crash is one thing. Subsequently discovering that you are in line to be the mother of the antichrist as a result is something entirely irregular. Now Julianna must learn how to live with her grandparents and learn how to survive as the heir to the line of Lillith. I loved the concept of this book; it’s interesting to consider how the AntiChrist’s mother came to be, who she is, whether she embraced her role, etc. Unfortunately the execution was really underwhelming, particularly in terms of basic grammar and editing. There were a lot of spellcheck type errors, such as the word “quite” instead of “quiet” but there were also a lot of really basic errors, such as using “I seen” instead of “I saw” and the absolute most egregious use of the word “whenever” I have read in a long time. Not only was it regularly used instead of the word “when” an...

Child of Shadows by Kathe Todd My rating: 4 of 5 stars Leila has had a rough life, but she’s made the best of it. She has scrapped, stolen and survived, and while she is an excellent thief, her luck may be about to run out. Running from guards who discovered her theft, she is drawn to an eery temple and is conscripted into service by a disgraced god. Will she be able to complete his task and restore him to his former glory? Not even his gifts and her skills as a thief may get her through this adventure. Set in an alternate reality Age of Enlightenment Europe (1700s or so) where the gods are not just stories but actively participating in modern life, author Kathe Todd pits them against each other in much the same way the Greek and Roman pantheon are portrayed in the classical stories. They squabble, they manipulate, and for some reason they always require human muscle to carry out their divine intervention. The story progresses like an epic, with a long journey and a lot of learn...