exceptional and unexceptional

[snugglekitty]

I stumbled across Elizabeth Bear's first fantasy novel, Blood and Iron, quite unexpectedly. I had no idea that she had branched out from hard sci fi. Sarah Monette reviewed the book, noting that Bear "takes everything you think you know about Faerie and twists it until it bleeds." She's not wrong. I loved this book. It starts out like standard fantasy, and just when you think you've got everything figured out, the curveballs start coming - and they don't stop. She plays on the reader's assumptions in delightful ways. This one is a genre-changer. I hope that the sequel, due early in 2007, will be as good. Five stars.

The unexceptional book is Invisible Lives by Anajali Bannerjee. This is a romatic comedy, supposed to be Sex and the City meets Bollywood. It didn't live up to that promise. We have the standard premise - does the main character marry the rich Indian man her family has chosen for her, or the sexy American chauffeur? This book would have been a lot more interesting if there was anything likeable about the Indian guy. He interrupted her sentences, didn't like her cats, didn't want her to drive... the list goes on. It was obvious that he would have made her miserable, she would have been an idiot to marry him, so there was no real conflict. It would have been more believable and interesting if he'd had some appealing qualities, or if the chauffeur had had some flaws. Sorry if this spoils the book for anyone, but honestly, the book spoils itself. The lush language was the only thing I liked about it. Two stars.

Comments

[chienne-folle.livejournal.com]

I've just requested Blood and Iron from the library. Thanks!