Richard Reviews Nyssa Glass and the House of Mirrors by H.L. Burke

The author of this book has kindly offered an e-copy (Kindle or epub) of Nyssa Glass and the House of Mirrors to one lucky reader. To be in with a chance to win, just leave a comment below or on our Facebook page.

The draw will be announced about a week after this post.

Cover - Nyssa Glass and the House of Mirrors

I read Nyssa Glass and the House of Mirrors, by H.L. Burke, on the recommendation of a friend and am very glad to have done so: I really enjoyed this story.

The plot follows a young lady - Nyssa, of course - through a series of exploits as she tries to extricate herself from being unjustly accused of murder. Her background is dubious enough to make the accusation likely to be believed, but she is determined to deserve the trust of her employer Mr Calloway, and her former teachers at Miss Pratchett's School for Mechanically Minded Maids. This determination keeps her going through puzzles, dangers, and difficulties.

On the surface, her basic task seems clear - find a way into a seemingly abandoned house and retrieve a missing item. But inevitably things are not so simple. The house turns out to be well-defended, although the protective systems are overdue for servicing and overhaul, and it is not so empty as it seems at first sight...

"A little over four years ago, all traffic in and out of Dalhart Manor ceased. Up until that point, Dalhart had been reclusive, but his staff and son were often seen going about their business. Then one day, half the staff was unexpectedly let go, and the remaining half..."

The action takes place almost entirely within a single day - barring some necessary flashbacks and a brief "what followed" section - but it is easy to forget the shortness of the timespan as you are carried along with the action. You reach the end of the book feeling that you have come to learn a great deal about her, owing to the intensity of her experiences.

"Once you start scraping away at the puzzle of that house, you won't be able to stop until you've excavated its last secret."

Hall of mirror, Palace of Versailles (Wiki)

A recurring theme of the book is the question of who Nyssa can rely on. Sometimes she makes the wrong decision, and finds herself having to work out how to undo the difficulties resulting from this. Her life experiences have not disposed her to be particularly trusting, and suspicion of motives easily rises to the surface of her thoughts. But the ongoing need to work out who is dependable and who is fickle is a major thread of the book, and one which several of the characters grapple with. The answers to these questions shift multiple times through the book as various facts and snippets of background become clear.

"Did I just turn on the security system? That has to be the biggest blunder in the history of cat burglary."

The author's chosen style is most like Steampunk, though with her own personal spin on the conventions of that genre which worked well for me. The level of scientific and technological accomplishment was a perfect complement to Nyssa's skills and abilities. Both feel entirely credible and I was fully immersed in the tale. I particularly liked the approach towards mechanical intelligence was handled - a very different route to our society's, or indeed what I choose for my own writing - but it is a persuasive and compelling alternative. There is a point where curious enquiry of possibilities gives way to the horrified realisation of reality, and this is handled particularly well.

"Please, someone... no, professor, no. It's not what I want. It's not right..."

House of Mirrors is a YA novel and the personal interactions reflect this. However, this should not deter anyone, and there is ample interest and character depth to satisfy an adult reader.

The cast of characters is comparatively small, and the end of the book strongly suggests that other books set in this world will follow in the future. I certainly hope so, and will be looking out for them.

Meanwhile, Mrs Burke has written a number of other YA fantasy novels, often with a dragonish theme.

About the author:

H.L. Burke

Born in a small town in north central Oregon, H. L. Burke spent most of her childhood around trees and farm animals and was always accompanied by a book. Growing up with epic heroes from Middle Earth and Narnia keeping her company, she also became an incurable romantic.

An addictive personality, she jumped from one fandom to another, being at times completely obsessed with various books, movies, or television series (Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, and Star Trek all took their turns), but she has grown to be what she considers a well-rounded connoisseur of geek culture.

Married to her high school crush who is now a US Marine, she has moved multiple times in her adult life but believes that home is wherever her husband, two daughters, and pets are - currently in southern California. She has written twelve books in speculative genres, ranging from Epic Fantasy to YA Steampunk.

Find out more at her web site, blog, on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

About the reviewer:
Richard Abbott lives in London, England. He writes science fiction about our solar system in the fairly near future, and also historical fiction set in the ancient Middle East - Egypt, Syria, Canaan and Israel.

When not writing words or computer code, he enjoys spending time with family, walking, and wildlife, ideally combining all three pursuits in the English Lake District. He is the author of In a Milk and Honeyed Land, Scenes From a Life, The Flame Before Us - and most recently Far from the Spaceports. He can be found at his website or blog, on Google+, Goodreads, Facebook and Twitter.

The Best of The Review: Favorite Posts From the First Half Year (Volume IV)

Wolf's Head by Steven A. McKay~~

We all know of Robin Hood; the archetypal swashbuckler in Lincoln green, from the Hollywood sanitised Errol Flynn to the family friendly recent BBC TV series; although personally, being a bit of an aging hippy, I’ll always have a love of the 1980’s Michael Praed series… besides, do you remember Maid Marion back then? Wow! But I digress… Robin Hood was a Wolfshead, an outlaw, living in brutal times on the periphery of feudal society. Chivalry, the concept to curb the blood lusty excesses of the nobility, would not apply to the outlaw. Outlaws would be desperate men, forced into theft and murder in order to survive. Therefore for, gutsy realism, my first choice will be Stuart’s excellent review of Wolfs Head, from the talented pen of Steven A McKay. Perhaps this intro is a bit long but it's true about Lady Marion…*sigh* ~~Rob

When you take such a well known and well loved tale as Robin Hood and his Merry Men it would be only too easy to go down that well trodden path so familiar to all who know the legend. "Hail fellow and well met!" greetings between rosy cheeked outlaws who dress in green tights and short tunics like medieval tranvestites while swinging through Sherwood Forest laughing like giddy schoolboys. It was therefore a delight to read this book and find that Steven A. McKay has taken the legend, given it a good shake and let this thoroughly enjoyable version fall out.

From the very first page you find yourself in Yorkshire rather than Nottinghamshire, in the village of Wakefield rather than Loxley. Here Robin is a common man who through a moment of anger is forced into fleeing his home, his family and his love Mathilda. These changes add a genuine fresh twist to the tale which adds so much to the book. 

His travails in the wild woods as he is forced into seeking the company of a band of outlaws in order to survive allows the author to introduce some well known names while fleshing out their characters and giving them a background history which makes them feel like real people. What all these outlaws have in common is by and large they have been forced into a life of theft and murder through forces beyond their control. Rich landlords, royal officials and sheriffs are the villains of the piece here and there are plenty of stand-out scenes which allows you to cheer on Robin and his friends as they battle the forces of oppression.

Click to continue reading…

Lorri Covers It: Steampunk Cover Review~~

You can’t judge a book by the cover, but you can get an inkling of what it’s about. For lovers of Steampunk, that subgenre of Sci-Fi set in a Victorian world, the imagery is important. Lorri’s analysis is superb and the covers featured are stunningly beautiful.~~Rob

The Affinity Bridge by George Mann,
Tor Books

For the uninitiated, Steampunk is a subgenre of Sci Fi, and one that has many explanations. My take on this quirky and slightly wonderful “thing” is to imagine the console of the Tardis, add the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen and plonk it all into a late Industrial Revolution setting (London or the Wild West). I think the best summing up of it comes from The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences, who state “if Jules Verne or H.G. Wells were writing their science fiction today, it would be considered “steampunk”.

When I first looked at this genre, I had trouble getting it – much like the first time I picked up a Terry Pratchett book, but I have since become a convert, and I am now considering an entire wardrobe change as a result. Reviewing Steampunk book covers has also proved more difficult than the other genres; mainly because there is no right or wrong. Steampunk continues to evolve, and so therefore does reader taste and the art associated with it. To that end, I have decided that there are no bad Steampunk covers – just lots of different ones. Here are some to whet your appetite.

Click to continue reading...

Sunday Wrap Up: Week ending March 2, 2014

There's no question that here at The Review we have some pretty fantastic books and reviews, to say the least. Periodically we also get to showcase a bit about ourselves, the admins, with series that focus on a common theme. This week we got a bit of both as well as a new weekly feature: the Sunday Wrap Up, a glimpse at the week just passed and opportunity for readers--whether coming back to familiar ground or those happening upon a great new blog--to review it all in one page that can be used as a base from which to visit or re-visit their favorite posts from the previous week.

So what happened this week?

Well, Simon wrapped up our series of favorite books, in which
each of us approached that idea from different angles. In this case Simon chose to focus on one book and the influence it had within his reading experiences. He writes: "I came across [Alan Garner's] short novel, Red Shift, when I was about twelve and on holiday. I was already familiar with his previous books--The Weirdstone of Brisingamen, The Moon of Gomrath, Elidor, The Owl Service--and so I thought I knew what I was letting myself in for.

Red Shift takes on Garner's fascination with place to a new level. The novel (and it's a very short one) follows three stories which all happen in the same places, but at different times. So we start with Tom and Jan, teenage lovers in the second half of the 20th century; then we're suddenly plunged into second-century Britain, with a detachment of soldiers on the run from the Roman army through tribal territory; and then we find ourselves in the 17th century, with a frightened village awaiting the arrival of hostile troops."

--Intrigued? Of course you are! To keep reading, click here.

"Th[is] story follows [author] Kelly's ancestor through the trials and tribulations of Belfast's poorer Protestant areas. William Henry Kelly, his wife Belle, and their small family are beset by tragedy and hardship--some of their own making--until one final tragedy changes William Henry's life forever." Michelle goes on to write about Kelly's ancestor and his prison experiences as well as history as it unfolded, opening towards the Great War and events on local, national and international levels.

A Wistful Eye: The Tragedy of a Titanic Shipwright takes readers behind the scenes: to get a glimpse of those who brought the ship to life as well as individual, personal events leading up to and following the 1912 tragedy. For the rest of Michelle's review of a poignant story you surely will want to read, continue...

Steampunk? What's that!? On another book cover review visit to us, Lorri does a great job introducing those unfamiliar to the genre: "For the uninitiated, steampunk is a sub genre of sci fi, and one that has many explanations. My take on this quirky and slightly wonderful 'thing' is to imagine the console of The Tardis, add The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen and plonk it all into a late Industrial Revolution setting (London or the Wild West). I think the best summing up of it comes from The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences, who state: 'If Jules Verne or H.G. Wells were writing their science fiction today, it would be considered steampunk'."

One steampunk cover appears at right, but what's fascinating about it all is that the various images are so different! Come see others Lorri chooses to review and what she has to say about them!

Many of us have heard of the old belief that in order for a woman to carry twins she must have conceived with two different men--leading, of course, to accusations of adultery. Against the backdrop of 17th century England, a post-civil-war setting in which many were "edging towards the era of enlightenment, individualism and new scientific understanding," Twins follows the fortunes of Elizabeth Torbett and her twin babies, Emma and Edgar, as they all make their way in the world. Carol reviews the novel with a keen eye and writes:

"I particularly liked Pym’s characterisation. Her protagonists are very sympathetic and her rogues a nightmare. I would not like to run into any of them on a foggy night in a 1660s London alleyway. Pym’s technique is to be commended as she moves Emma’s story forward only to stop with a cliff-hanger. She gives Edgar’s story the same page-turning treatment. Pym also, sensibly, adheres to the point of view of the pair so that, considering the many events and characters within the novel’s pages, readers are never lost. Though there is a gallery of characters, they are all memorably and vividly portrayed, even the downtrodden mother who finds her voice as the story progresses." Follow on with Carol's review here.

Linda wraps up the week this time with her review of our own Paula Lofting's Sons of the Wolf, which follows the life of protagonist "Wulfhere, a great bear of a man, who is a creature of principal, although he often wishes he were  not. He is a loyal servant of the king and of Harold Godwinson, earl of Wessex,  but he is also the guardian of  Horstede and the protector of his family, and his loyalties and responsibilities often come in conflict. And that is a dilemma for a man who attempts to be all things to everyone." Linda continues:

"Lofting [ . . . ] builds her storyline from there.  Then she  adds her own considerable knowledge of the sociology and politics of eleventh century Saxon England. Next  she adds to the mix all of the ingredients that  make a novel of any genre readable--love, sex, hate, jealousy, remorse, guilt, infidelity, vengeance,  death and profound tragedy. And to all of that, she  adds her  incredible talent for bringing blood and gore into her action scenes without overpowering the essence of her story, and writes her action scenes as if she were riding in the van." The incredible mix of history and individual experiences, woven together with Domesday book characters and then some, makes for a novel you not only will have to get your hands on, but will leave you yearning for more. If at all possible to be on the fence, reading the rest of Linda's review will take care of that. As for the longing once you finish the book: the sequel is nearly ready!

****Currently there is a FREE autographed copy of Sons of the Wolf up for grabs. Comment at the blog or Facebook thread to get your name in the hat!****