Book Review: Dawnshard by Brandon Sanderson

Dawnshard: From The Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Brandon Sanderson’s novella Dawnshard focuses on the quest to a mysterious island of Aimia that has ramifications not only for Roshar, but also to the Cosmere as a whole. The primary characters are Rysn and the Lopen, secondary characters from the main Stormlight novels in either the Interludes or Kaladin chapters. While the story begins slowly, Sanderson’s writing really gets things moving soon enough and the surprising foreshadowing of some conversations between characters to developments in the narrative are so subtle that only seeing those conversations again do you realize what Sanderson did. Overall, the novella doesn’t need to be read before Rhythm of War but if one chooses to, you’ll better understand some of the character development that Lopen exhibits from Oathbringer.

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Book Review: The Baker's Boy by J.V. Jones

The Baker's Boy by J.V. Jones
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A young servant and a young noblewoman in the same castle leave of their own accord though not together, then add in sex and politics and this isn’t your traditional fantasy series. The Baker’s Boy by J.V. Jones is the first book of The Book of Words trilogy.

Coming into this book I expected a “classic” or “traditional” fantasy trilogy, by the end of the prologue that assumption was out the window. Yet upon finishing this book I can say that the classic/traditional tropes were there but so were elements akin with George R.R. Martin and Joe Abercrombie’s writing especially connected with sex and politics. Although the titular character, Jack, does feature prominently along with the standard young noble woman, Melli, the character whose story arc in the book that felt more complete was the Knight of Valdis Tawl. The other story arc was the deadly political contest between Baralis and Maybor, Melli’s father, as they jockey for being the power behind the throne in the Four Kingdoms especially on who would be Prince Kylock’s future queen. Then there were outside observers, in particular Archbishop Tavilisk of Rorn, who while not “doing” much in this book look to be important as the series continues. In addition to the “main” characters traveling in circles with minor character development there were questionable decisions that Jones had like the non-regnant queen of the Four Kingdoms being the political figure in charge for the infirmed king instead of the chancellor, Baralis, and the aforementioned queen questioned the very clean appearance of her 17-year old son’s room in a castle filled with royal servants who might take care of that for the heir to the kingdom. Yet with all these issues, Jones writes a very readable book that is engaging if you’re into political intrigue and mysterious magical powers that the reader sees will be important, but the characters still aren’t in control of after one book.

The Baker’s Boy is an interesting opening volume to a fantasy trilogy. J.V. Jones mixes classic tropes with darker ones to create an intriguing story that will get readers attention from the start while building up elements for later in the series.

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Book Review: Richard Nixon: The Life by John A. Farrell

Richard Nixon: The Life by John A. Farrell
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

He might be considered the original Cold Warrior and his quarter-century career was defined by and defined the period in the United States, but his legacy is intertwined with a landmark Washington hotel. Richard Nixon: The Life by John A. Farrell reveals the personal and political life of one of the most divisive figures of mid-20th Century America.

Farrell’s life of Richard Nixon revolves around the political life of the United States from the end of World War II to the end of the Vietnam War, in which he was a significant player. The biography begins with how Nixon entered politics before going into his childhood, courtship of Pat, and experience in World War II. While Farrell doesn’t ignore Nixon’s family life after 1946, this is essentially a political biography because that’s how Nixon lived his life. His red-baiting tactics in 1946 and 1950 heralding the McCarthy era are examined in full, the Alger Hiss case is examined in full, Nixon’s role in Eisenhower’s nomination is revealed, his friendship then antagonism with the Kennedys is full revealed, and his hate-hate relationship with the press and the Establishment is a constant theme. Once in the Oval Office however Farrell’s focus of the biography revolves around Vietnam and the events that lead up to the momentous events both foreign and domestic of 1972 that would define his legacy. With just under 560 pages of text, Farrell had a lot of history and politics that he needed choose what to focus on and what to breeze by. I did not agree with some of Farrell’s decisions when it came to Nixon’s time in the White House as it felt he was short shifting some things, not Vietnam, so he could get to Watergate; however, Farrell’s time spent on the Bangladesh Liberation War/Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 revealed new information to me and was a great addition.

Richard Nixon: The Life is a well written and informative biography of the 37th President of the United States that John A. Farrell did an impressive job in researching and authoring. While I had minor grips with Farrell’s decisions during Nixon’s years in the White House, it doesn’t undermine the overall quality of the book.

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Book Review: Revenge of the Sith by Matthew Stover

Star Wars, Episode III: Revenge of the Sith by Matthew Woodring Stover
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The novelization of the final prequel film Revenge of the Sith hit shelves approximately six weeks before the film hit theaters, written by fantasy-science fiction writer Matthew Stover based on the script and story penned by George Lucas.

Stover sticks with the general outline of the film, especially at the beginning and the end of the novel but adds details that either Lucas cut from the film or details that added to the overall narrative. The book focuses more on Palpatine’s arguments to Anakin about the Jedi conspiring to destroy the Republic while his concern for Padme was subtly intertwined within the political aspects. While it added depth to Palpatine’s manipulation as well as Anakin’s character flaws, it would not have translated to a film. The scenes showing the birth of the Rebellion amongst Senators were nice touches that gives background to events that occur in the original trilogy. The best part of the novel was Stover’s descriptions of the characters throughout the novel especially their inner thoughts.

Revenge of the Sith is a great novelization that adds to what was included in the film as well as giving greater context.

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