Ed's Mini Book Review - The Naming of the Beasts by Mike Carey

Felix "Fix" Castor is back!

And boy does it feel like a reunion with an old friend. That seems to be a popular feeling with me nowadays as I said the same thing about the latest Dexter book and felt the same way with the most recent adventure featuring Joe Ledger.

This entry in the series picks up basically where the last book's cliffhanger left us, Fix trying to find Asmodeus. Things have not gone well for Felix in the meantime with an alcohol binge fueled by the guilt of Asmodeus' escape and killing spree. Now he has to get his act together and figure out what Asmodeus is up to and he needs to do it right quick before Asmodeus can wreak any more havoc. This leads to all sorts of questionable decisions be Felix and some unlikely alliances and one "alliance" that I was particularly looking forward too.

I might have said this in past reviews of the Felix Castor books, but they do progress nicely and move and a better pace than the earlier books. Word is that there is one more book planned but I am not sure where else to go after this book but I look forward to what Carey has planned for Felix Castor.

My Grade: B

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Ed's Mini Book Review - Thicker Than Water by Mike Carey

Thicker Than Water is book four of the Felix Castor series by current X-Men scribe Mike Carey. Castor is a British exorcist, making his lining in modern day London and gaining a bit of a rep. As with many fictitious gumshoe characters, he's got his detractors with the local police as well as three books worth of enemies built up.

This latest outing has Castor in a bit of a 'fix' as he is called to a scene by to police to explain why 'F. Castor' is written in blood at a crime scene. Back are some old police friends that are not too keen on Mr. Castor and are looking to send him up the river on this one so Felix is against the clock a bit to solve the mystery before the cops get enough proverbial rope to hang Felix. Sprinkle in a generous portion of Rafi, Felix's best chum who happens to be possessed by a major demon, and Juliet, a demon in her own right trying to live among the humans and you get that supernatural ensemble cast that is such a staple of the Urban Fantasy genre.

I think that the series keeps getting better. I wasn't sold after the first book and picked up the second because I was short on reads but I am so glad I did. The biggest improvement for me in the series is the pacing which was like molasses in the first book and now moves at a good clip for a series which averages over 400 pages an installment.

Solid from beginning to end, Thicker Than Water, gets a thumbs up from the LL.

My Grade: B

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Late Summer Reading List

Image by cmcgough via FlickrHi ho library nerds. I have been able to get a good amount of reading done this Summer and have updated my reading list a few times.

So, instead of updating that one over and over again, I will add a new list (even though the summer is almost over), so here goes.

Dead Men's Boots by Mike Carey

The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

Lamb by Christopher Moore (another requested read).

Ed's Mini Book Review - Vicious Circle

Something I want to get in the habit of doing is write a little review when I finish a book. I did this for a couple of movies on Facebook but didn't keep up with it but no I am determined with the books.

First on tap is Vicious Circle by Mike Carey and is the second of his books featuring Brit exorcist Felix Castor. Fans of the film Constantine will probably like the Felix Castor books as the two are similar in concept. Heck, Mike Carey even wrote the comic Hellblazer that the Constantine film was based on.

Felix, or Fix as his friends call him, is an exorcist who uses music to work his mojo, in particular he plays the flute to bind spirits and dispatch of them. In this go around, Felix is brought in to track a ghost, one of a child that has been kidnapped by another exorcist. Of course with all good mysteries, nothing is what it seems and a number of good twists and turns are abound.

Compared to the first Felix Castor book, The Devil You Know, this outing moves at more of a crisp pace and has the energy and feel of a good old mystery just with a bit of the supernatural kicked in for good measure. Carey does an excellent job of tying in the supernatural world of Felix Castor with the storytelling progression that may bog down lesser books and keeps up the action even while delving into the minds of the various characters in the book.

All-in-all, Vicious Circle, was right up my alley. I like my mysteries with a bit of the macabre or the supernatural and this one is a good one. Well written, moves at a brisk pace, has great dialog, and Fix is a protagonist that shines. I look forward to the next case taken by Felix Castor.

A-

Reading List

Image by Vicki's Pics via Flickr

Something I've been meaning to do for some time is post my current reading list. I hope I can figure out a way to make some sort of box or bar on the side that I can constantly update.

Well, here is my current reading list.

Vicious Circle by Mike Carey

The Dark Half by Stephen King

Incognito Vol.1 TPB by Ed Brubaker

Scott Pilgrim Vol. 1 TPB by Bryan Lee O'Malley

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