Wanderlust by Ann Aguirre
Release date: 26 August 2008 : Preorder WANDERLUST!

The Fangirl’s Rating: A+

Grimspace, the first book in this series, introduces us to Sirantha Jax, nav-star for the Corp who finds herself in a very dangerous situation. Wanderlust picks up immediately where Grimspace left off, after Jax and her crew have brought down the corrupt Corp and exposed the company’s dirty little secret: they crashed Jax’s ship to prevent a diplomatic conference from succeeding. Unfortunately, Jax doesn’t get a chance to rest and recover. After discovering that her bastard ex-husband had cleaned out her bank accounts, Jax takes the only route she can to get herself back on her feet; she takes up the post of ambassador to Ithiss-Tor, a planet unfriendly to the Conglomerate but that would be a necessary ally. And, as usual, Jax ends up embroiled in a much bigger conspiracy, one that threatens to take her life.

One thing I love about Aguirre’s writing is that it’s gritty. Jax does not get an easy ride at all; nothing ever falls into her lap, and she constantly has to work for everything she needs. This could come off as incredibly grim, but thanks to Aguirre’s masterful writing, Jax grows so much because of this adversity. A couple of times, I moaned, “oh no!” aloud while reading, but Jax and her crew always manage to think their way out of these situations.

The love story between Jax and her pilot, March, steps more toward center stage in this book, and like everything else for poor Jax, it’s not an easy ride. They are separated again and again, by bureaucracy, by warfare, by Jax’s own fear that she’s dying, and by March’s violent past. I think they’re a great couple in that they balance each other very well, but at the same time, I’m really hoping they’ll get some R&R in the next book, because if anyone deserves it, it’s these two.

Aguirre introduces more fascinating support characters and expands upon Jax’s existing crew in this book. Vel, the shapeshifting bounty hunter introduced in Grimspace, is one of my favorites, and I’m fascinating by Jael, the genetically altered mercenary. One thing I love about these books is that Jax obviously can’t do everything by herself. She constantly needs the support of her crew, and despite their supporting-character status, Aguirre develops them in such a way that they are tantalizing. We don’t know Vel’s or Jael’s histories, but we really want to know. I’m just as hooked on them as I am on Jax.

Wanderlust will be released on August 26, a little over a week from now, and you can preorder it on Amazon now. I definitely recommending reading Wanderlust as soon as is humanly possible. This is some seriously fantastic science fiction.

Grimspace by Ann Aguirre
Buy It Now

The Fangirl’s Rating: A

If you haven’t picked up this book yet, go get it. Right now. Shut down your computer, grab your keys, and RUN to the nearest bookstore. I’ll wait.

…

Got it? Okay, let’s get started.

Sirantha Jax is a jumper, a human who possesses the J-gene which gives her the ability to navigate grimspace, an alternate dimension that can be used to travel enormous distances in a short span of time. She was the Corp’s star jumper until her ship crashed mysteriously, killing her pilot/lover and a whole lot of diplomats. The Corp, a galaxy-wide organization with its fingers in all aspects of trade and commerce, is determined to break Jax’s mind, and she finds herself taking the only avenue of escape available to her: being kidnapped. March, a hard-ass with unusual mental powers, and his crew have a purpose in mind for Jax, but they find themselves sucked into a much bigger conspiracy, one that will affect their whole civilization.

I won an ARC of Wanderlust, the sequel to this book, on Smart Bitches and since I couldn’t review a sequel without reading the first, I ran out and bought Grimspace. And it’s one of the best books I’ve read in ages. It’s written in first-person, present-tense, which is usually the bane of my reading existence, but Aguirre’s writing style and the fluidity of Jax’s narration were so masterfully handled that after a while, I completely stopped noticing the tense and got sucked into the story.

The characters, particularly Jax and March, are fleshed out and refreshingly flawed. I love that, at one point, Jax cuts and runs instead of playing the hero. That made her more realistic to me than anything else; she’s selfish and scared and more than a little screwed up, and she’s incredibly likable because of that. The story itself is reminiscent of Joss Whedon’s Serenity, with the ragtag bunch of reluctant heroes fighting the huge, faceless establishment. The plot is very well-developed and interesting, and the world… well, galaxy, really, is intricately constructed. I love a well-built world, and this one, with its roots in Old Terra, definitely satisfies.

I seriously can’t recommend this book enough, whether you’re a fan of futuristic romance or straight science fiction. The romance isn’t played too heavily, and the book easily jumps between the two genres. The sequel, Wanderlust, is scheduled to be released August 26, 2008. If you still haven’t run out and bought this book yet, go now. Trust me, you won’t regret it.

Free e-books! YAY! Tor.com is giving away a bunch of e-books, but they’re only free through Sunday, July 27th. So crank up your download manager and go book shopping!

MAN, I’ve got to update this more often. This month is kicking my ass, though; I’m taking a really awesome class on ethnicity and race in comics/graphic novels, but the reading is intense and I’ve got to write three papers in five weeks. Urk. Time for a media dump!

I’ve been to the movies a bit lately. WALL-E is beautiful and sweet and charming without being cloying. Kung Fu Panda was hilarious and touching and gorgeously animated. I… er, saw Iron Man again. For the fifth time. I am a fangirl, what can I say? I’ll probably see The Dark Knight on Thursday, and I’m definitely seeing The X-Files: I Want To Believe (or as it should be titled, The X-Files: Incredibly Clunky Subtitle) on Friday. Hellboy is here from Netflix, waiting for me to watch it so I can eventually see Hellboy II: The Golden Army. I want to see Tropic Thunder mainly for Robert Downey, Jr.

The movie industry is out to torture my wallet this summer, seriously.

I’ve been reading lots of comics for class. If you’re looking for some good indie comics, try the Love & Rockets series by the Hernandez brothers. I read Human Diastrophism and Perla La Loca over the weekend, and both are very well-written with interesting artwork. Next up on the comics reading list is four volumes of Lucifer’s Garden of Verses by Lance Tooks and the rest of Stuck Rubber Baby by Howard Cruse. In non-class-related reading, I’m in the middle of The Hippopotamus Pool by Elizabeth Peters. Amelia Peabody = ♥

In video game news, I’m playing Dark Cloud 2 whenever I have a free minute. I love the combination of RPG, dungeon fighter, and worldbuilder, and the animation–particularly the environments–is gorgeous.

So… I’ve wasted enough time that should be used for paper-writing. Well, I’ve wasted enough time blogging. Now I should waste some more time making icons…

I love the Amelia Peabody mysteries. They play upon my love for strong female leads, Egyptology, romance, and a good mystery. I’ve had fun reading all of the books, but this one? Is probably my favorite since Crocodile on the Sandbank.

Yet another enemy is after the Peabody-Emersons, this time to discover the way to the hidden city they found in book 6, The Last Camel Died At Noon. Unfortunately, Emerson is kidnapped and subsequently loses his memory, and aside from trying to discover who is attempting to harm them, Amelia must now try to jog her husband’s memory, which conveniently disappeared back to the time just before they met.

While the amnesia plot device can be rather hackneyed, Peters uses it to revitalize the relationship between Amelia and Emerson. It is at the same time funny and frustrating, particularly for poor Amelia, who must put up with Emerson as he was before she… er, tamed him.

The mystery itself was a delight. I found myself jumping back and forth between suspects, and when all was revealed at the end, I gasped out loud.

Really, I can’t recommend this series highly enough. It’s become my mission in life to convert people to the Way of Amelia Peabody. In the last two weeks, I’ve converted three people. I’m building up good book karma, you see. Help me build up more karma? :D Seriously, if you get a chance, check out this series. You won’t regret it.

In a surprising bit of awesomeness, I WON SOMETHING! YAY! This is cool because I don’t think I’ve won anything awesome since those New Kids On The Block tickets when I was a kid. :D

I won a copy of Ann Aguirre’s Wanderlust, so keep your eyes peeled for a review!

Also keep your eyes peeled for a new feature here at The Discriminating Fangirl: The Poor Woman’s Book Review, for poor suckers like me who do most of their book buying at used bookstores. The first installment will be a review of Elizabeth Peters’s Amelia Peabody Mysteries, books 1 through 7.

There’s no better way to start the morning off right than with some good linkage.

First up: Paperback Writer posts Skiffy Ten, ten links about writing science fiction.

I’m somewhat of a stilted writer. I get ideas, I think about said ideas, and then sometimes I write them down, but I hardly ever bring them to fruition. This is a sucky writing habit, and it’s one I’m working at changing (I actually finished some poems this summer! Woo!). But, er, anyway, most of what I think about writing falls under the umbrella of speculative fiction, and PBW’s links are extremely helpful for anyone interested in dipping their toes (or diving headfirst into) the world of spec fic. My favorite links on this page are Bruce Sterling’s lexicon for SF writing workshops and China Miéville’s short essay on world building.

Which reminds me, I really should re-compile my list of world building resources and post it here.

Next! New promo image from X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Pardon me for a moment, I need to drool over Hugh Jackman’s biceps and shoulders.

…Okay, I’m good. I’m digging all of the sexy shots of Wolvie, don’t get me wrong. I love the fangirl fanservice, but I keep hoping for official shots of the other characters. I want to see Liev Schrieber decked out as Sabretooth. That not-Native-American woman as Silver Fox. That kid from Friday Night Lights as Gambit. Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool, for god’s sake!

C’mon, Fox, toss us a little more than just Jackman in a wifebeater. Though I in no way object to tossing us more Jackman in a wifebeater along the way.

And in very old news, Tom Cruise was approached a few years ago to play Tony Stark in a version of Iron Man that thankfully crashed and burned. Oh dear GOD, can you imagine how horrible that would have been? [clings to Robert Downey, Jr.]

Succubus On Top by Richelle Mead

Wow. I really liked the first book in this series, Succubus Blues, but I didn’t expect this one to exceed the first. Succubus On Top is great. It’s funny, it’s sexy, it’s a good mystery, the characters are very likable… I can’t praise this book enough.

We first met Georgina Kincaid, a succubus living in Seattle, in Succubus Blues. Aside from being a temptress employed by Hell, Georgie is an assistant manager at a local bookstore. In this book, she meets up with a very old friend, an incubus she tutored in the ways of seduction a few centuries ago, and she has to figure out what kind of strange drug that’s messing up her mortal friends’ lives.

I think it’s the cast of characters that keeps me hooked on Richelle Mead’s books. Georgina is beautifully created; she’s interesting, funny, and realistically flawed. Her fellow employees of the dark are fantastic supporting characters, from Cody and Peter, the cheerful vampires, to her archdemon boss, Jerome, who looks strangely like John Cusack. I’m really fascinated by Carter, the angel who is, strangely enough, Jerome’s best friend. Aside from the fact that he’s an angel who could double as a grunge kid, there’s just so much under the surface.

And then there’s Seth, Georgina’s mortal, novelist boyfriend. I’m really not fond of novel boyfriends who are just so perfect, but Seth… I want Seth for myself. He’s incredibly smart, creative, witty… I really love the tension that Mead sets up between Georgie and Seth. As a succubus, Georgina can’t have sex with or even kiss Seth deeply without sucking away his life energy. I get the feeling this series of books is going to deal a LOT with how they can maintain their relationship while resisting the urge to jump each other’s bones.

The mystery itself is pretty good, better than the first. The ending feels a bit rushed, but that’s forgivable. Now… to figure out how I’m going to make it to October 2008, when the next book comes out.

I’ve been a fan of science fiction pretty much since before I could walk. My parents took me to see The Empire Strikes Back when I was a toddler, and I grew up on Star Wars, Star Trek, and other science fiction and fantasy staples. The thing is, most of the science fiction I consume is visual. I watch SF movies and TV shows or read comics. I don’t read a lot of SF, and by god, it’s time to change that.

I’ve always been interested in cyberpunk as a genre, though again mostly through films like Bladerunner and The Matrix. I got interested in William Gibson thanks to The X-Files episode “Kill Switch” in season 5. Hell, I’ve even studied feminist cyberpunk in a course on the supernatural in pop culture, but other than a couple of short stories, I’ve never read any.

So, dear readers, here is where I ask you to recommend your favorite cyberpunk books. I’m already collecting Gibson novels (I found The Difference Engine at a used bookstore, and snagged Virtual Light, Idoru, Mona Lisa Overdrive, and All Tomorrow’s Parties off of BookMooch), but which ones have I missed? How about Phillip K. Dick? What are some other awesome cyberpunk authors? I am particularly interested in cyberpunk (or science fiction in general) written by women, so I’d welcome those recommendations, too.

Currently:
Wearing: Nocturne Alchemy’s Tut Ankh Amun perfume oil
Listening to: Foo Fighters - “The Pretender”
Reading: Harry Potter & The Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling

After three weeks of studying how fairy tales are used in Holocaust novels, I found myself in serious need of comfort reading. I tried to pick up some of the paranormal romances in my To Read stack, but I just couldn’t focus on them. Having to delve so deeply into analyzing Holocaust narrative had left a big imprint on me, and I needed something familiar and comfortable… a literary woobie.

My literary woobie is the Harry Potter series series by J.K. Rowling. When I lived in Germany, I worked at a tiny shop that was quiet most of the time; we sold sweaters and teapots, so we only really had a rush of customers during the first cold snap of the year and Christmas. My manager used to quilt behind the counter. Being a reader and a writer, I’d bring books and notebooks. I discovered Harry Potter in the bookstore around the corner from my shop. I can’t remember the exact circumstances, but I’d probably forgotten to bring something to read, and so I ducked over there during a break. The second book had been out in paperback for a few months, and the display caught my eye. I picked up Harry Potter & The Sorcerer’s Stone and ploughed through it in less than a day. I ran back to the bookstore and bought Chamber of Secrets that afternoon and read it the next day.

And thus began my obsessive Harry Potter reading. After Prisoner of Azkaban was released, I’d bring at least two of the books with me to work and read my way through, over and over. I’ve read the first three books… oh god, at least thirty times apiece. I’m close to that on Goblet of Fire, too. It’s kind of embarrassing to admit it, sort of like admitting that you saw Star Wars Episode I about twenty times in the theatre. [cough] I certainly didn’t. [shifty eyes]

I never get tired of the Harry Potter series, no matter how many times I read it. Picking up those books is like getting to hang out with that old friend whom you only see every six months. It’s familiar, but every time I start to re-read, it’s like I’m being reintroduced to that loved one.

What are your literary woobies?

Currently…
Listening to: Bebel Gilberto - Aganjú
Reading: The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo
Watching: The X-Files, season six