Blood Blade is the debut novel in a new supernatural series by Marcus Pelegrimas and you realize it’s going to be a different kind of book from page one.  The story begins with a video game designer named Cole Waenecki, who's run into designer's block.  He has a few kinks to work out in a new game that is set to be released worldwide in several months and he cannot finish it.  It seems to him that a vacation would be just the trick in beating his designers block – so, off he goes to British Columbia on an extreme vacation.  He hopes his adventures will inspire him to create new moves in his video game.  

Unfortunately, the trip isn't what he expected, beginning with a terrifying ride on a ‘bucket with wings’ to the middle of nowhere with no way out.  Out in the wilderness, they are attacked by a monster and Cole simply cannot believe it - at first.  But, he finally realizes that he is going to be killed if he doesn’t think of something to do.  He is eventually helped by two men from his travel group who are able to fight this creature, this monster that should not exist.  In fact, they fight better than anyone he has ever seen. They may not be able to kill the monster but they can certainly keep it busy.

These two men turn out to be part of a group of special hunters called 'skinners' that specialize in these hunting these types of monsters.  The trouble is that the monster is a full blooded shapeshifter and the two hunters will never be able to kill it.  In fact, it does kill them both but not before they mysteriously tell Cole he has to ‘call Paige at MEG’.  Now the story really gets started as Cole turns out to be the only survivor of the shapeshifting monster who attacked his camp.  It is hard for him to believe that all of the things he had fantasized about for his new video games are basically true.  Vampires (nymars), half-blooded and full-blooded shape shifters - and more – are all actually living creatures!

Not knowing what else to do, Cole calls the phone number given to him by the mysterious hunters, which leads to his contact with the Midwestern Ectological Group or MEG.  He is given just enough information to make him dangerous while they allow him to access weapons that can truly kill the shape shifters.  Special weapons are just the beginning of his training as Cole goes through a crash course on how to be a hunter or ‘skinner’ as they are called from Paige Strobel, skinner extraordinaire.  And, Cole hopes that he will be learning more than just fighting from Paige, their close contact during fighting lessons has him thinking about other things besides
monsters and martial arts.

Cole becomes increasingly fascinated with this hidden supernatural world and knows that he will never return to his old life. Especially when the master nymar, Mysonik, has made it his life’s goal or, ‘non-life’ I should say, to either kill Cole or make him his slave.  The nymar in this novel are vampires but they have become that way due to a spore that encases the heart of a human and makes them into a vampire (nymar).  Cole is going to have to learn what it means to be a skinner and find a way to stop Mysonik, who not only wants Cole but who also wants to take over all the nymar and other shape shifters.

The novel has great action scenes and good witty repartee between the characters.  The story itself draws somewhat from traditional beliefs about vampires – that they are the bad guys just like they were before being a vampire became sexy.  The author has done a great job of taking well used material and making it new and interesting.  This novel is definitely not for teenagers but for the adult lover of supernatural fiction, this book is just the ticket.

Before the vampire craze began nationwide, teenagers knew how fun a good vampire read could be.  In 1994, Christopher Pike wrote the novel "The Last Vampire" long before writing vampire novels was the popular thing to do.  It is the story of a girl that has been eighteen years old for five thousand years.  She believes herself to be the last vampire alive and then finds out that a detective has been hired to investigate her.  Her goal now is to find the mystery person who has hired this detective and discover their motives:

Do they know that vampires exist?

During her search, she will find herself facing urges she has never known before as well as an enemy that she may not be able to defeat.

The fight sequences are a little graphic but there is enough action to keep any thrill seeker interested.  Is it suitable for a teenage audience?  It is hard to say.  The book was written as your adult fiction but it’s never patronizing to its target audience.  It covers the topics of religion and cloning in a such a way as to allow for the reader to decide how they feel about these potentially sensitive and controversial subjects.

Christopher Pike has created a vampire that you could love to hate but she has an incredible back story that is quite fantastic.  As you read through the novel, you are able to picture in your mind how it could really happen this way - that there could be a ‘last vampire’.  Sometimes it seems a little too convenient when she ends up in a situation where she needs to fly a helicopter to escape and all of a sudden you find out she knows how to fly helicopters.  But, the overall story lets you ignore these little problems.

You can tell the author is a male because the romance in the novel is a little stilted, but if you use your imagination, it is still a lot of fun to read.  The beginning is a bit slow but the book has good dialogue and it’s very unpredictable.  With all of the twists and turns you will find in this novel, I recommend it for a great, fast-paced read.

British fantasy author Joe Abercrombie has produced one of the most impressive trilogies of all times in The First Law trilogy. Published between 2006 and 2008, the books in the trilogy - The Blade Itself, Before They are Hanged and The Last Argument of Kings have brilliant plots and complex characters added to the investigation of the human mind’s dark labyrinths.

A class apart, Abercrombie’s books have no heroes or villains; ‘good guys’ do not get rewarded nor do the bad guys get their dues. Good and evil depends on who is speaking – the author holds up a dark mirror and we can see both the good and the bad behaviors which we are all capable of.

His writing is so effective that his stories allow us to examine our own sins and successes through them. There are no dragons or mages in the storyline but instead these are stories made up of tears, sweat and blood that we can relate to. Abercrombie does not write dialogues, he simply writes the characters and these characters speak to the readers.  His fight scenes lack chivalry and valor and his love scenes illustrate that nothing, including love, can save one from his own blindness.

The trilogy is centered around Logen Ninefingers – ‘the thinking man’s barbarian’. Mostly Logen does what he wants to without much exertion, however in war "The Bloody Nine" (his alter ego) takes over.  This character is as likely to kill and destroy friends as foe. Other "point-of-view" characters are Collum West (a career soldier), Jezal Luthar (a spoilt aristocrat), Glokta (a war hero) and Ferro (a runaway slave). The politics and social commentary of their worlds is evident throughout the story.

The first book, The Blade Itself, is where we see Bayaz leading his team to war and the conflicts he encounters. Before They Are Hanged, shows the invasion of Angland and the struggle of the badly equipped and trained Midderlands army fighting against the Northmen. The war’s climax occurs in book three, The Last Argument of Kings. While the army is in Angland and the king is newly elected, Midderland is attacked by flesh eating priests leading an army of religious fanatics. They must hold the territory until the army returns.

The expression ‘First Law’ refers to the consequences of breaking the law of magic, of using it from the dark side. Though each of the books is skillfully well-rounded, none of them really stands alone. To really enjoy the epic you must read them as a series in chronological order. So, if you're looking for gritty and harsh fantasy with a lot of destruction and death, these are just the books for you!

Called a ‘striking writer’ by Robert Jordan, J. V. Jones is a master storyteller who has woven an unforgettable tale in A Sword from Red Ice. All the emotions of a human spirit – strength, ambition and betrayal make this epic fantasy a fascinating read. The characters are compelling in a saga of the cold, splintered world.

The world is war ridden and in the utter chaos, clans are fighting for dominance. Clan chiefs in their arrogance urge followers to battles and are constantly plotting and killing while most of the clansmen yearn for peace and unity. The darkest threat comes from the city of Spire Vanis whose rulers have long desired to dominate all clans. In the midst of all this worldly chaos, the book also deals with personal demons: A clanswoman who will do anything to save her people; a young woman with an unknown past; a young man betrayed by his brother ;and a natural killer who abounds in love and loyalty. Though individually all of them seek their own survival, together they hold the key to the world’s salvation.

In the previous books from the Sword of Shadows series, J. V. Jones had written powerful stories about Raif Sevrance and Ash March, a man and a woman, whose fates are interwoven while they set out to save the world, all the while trying to find themselves. As Ash pursues her future and Raif takes a refuge, the story turns out to be violent, suspenseful and exciting – all at the same time. If you are fond of fantasy epics on grander scales, this book is a great read.

The author presents fantasy in an intriguingly unique manner which will keep the reader glued to the story until the end. The book's narrative creates a compelling atmosphere of dark foreboding and mounting tension and suspense.  Jones is an imaginative and vivid author and the trilogy is extremely addictive. The seamless narrative and believable character development are added bonuses in the book.

Though the book is absolutely engrossing the copious amount of details provided in the book can put off some readers. Her previous books focused more on relevant sequences of events and some may feel that A Sword from Red Ice spends too much time on initial explanations. However since some readers don't read trilogies or book series in chronological order the history of the characters is to be expected.
 
Overall the book works as either a standalone volume or as part of a series.

Scott Lynch wrote a prequel to Red Seas under Red Skies called  The Lies of Locke Lamora. However, you don't have to read the previous books in the series to enjoy this new release. The book is a lot of fun and except for a few references from its successor, a story in itself. Though not earth shaking in its plot or characters, they are well imagined and portrayed.

The structure of the book is different in that it does not confirm to any chronological order.  In fact the book begins with a scene that's re-visited much later in the book.  The first half of Red Seas under Red Skies alternates between chapters dealing with the present and flashback chapters. Though it's not clear why this occurs and the pattern is abandoned half way through the book, it surprisingly doesn't detract from the overall storyline.

If the first book was in the veins of Oliver Twist, this book will remind you of the Ocean’s Eleven movies its story centering on a plan to penetrate the vault of an extremely protected casino. The book is funny, fast paced and colorful and the author does a good job with world building.  You can almost feel the place and see the people through the book and its characters.

After the disastrous setback in the first book, Locke Lamora and his friend Jean Tannen reach the city of Tal Verrar. They plan to break into the vault of a gambling den, the Sinspire but are soon hindered by outside influences, namely, someone called The Archon.  The Archon drags them into a plot which would increase his powers.  They are told to capture a pirate ship which will, hopefully, make clear the need to increase the Archon’s powers.

Midway through the story changes into a pirate story.  Locke and Jean are abducted by female pirates who are actually good guys. They are looking to discharge their compulsion to the Archon, remain with the ‘good guys’ and also revamp their Sinspire plans. The fantastical elements are not very impressive but the action scenes once the pirates come in, are fantastic.

In the end, this is a likeable book with good world building and character development.

Acacia: The War with the Mein is a book written without much back story. Its immense readability comes from the way Durham lays out his subplots without adding any artificiality to the narrative or characterization. He gently guides the leader into the world of the story and the reader, instead of wallowing in the history of Durham's world, gets involved in the making of the history.

The book presents the inner turmoil of a father who is caught unawares in his dilemma of his responsibilities to his kingdom as well as to the peace in his children’s life in his final years. He is stuck between a potential fulfillment of his dreams and his worst nightmare coming to life.  In the end he decides to send his children into hiding, just like he hid himself and this is when his children begin to understand the world they live in, and eventually themselves.

Durham has always been involved in historical fiction and Acacia has the feel of a tale told by a historian. Unfortunately this detachment prevents the reader from empathasizing with the characters. So, although the characters show you all they have to offer, there is a lack of emotional highs or lows in the storyline and the reader's not truly drawn into the character’s lives.

Though the book touches on the war, slavery, nationalism and leadership it does so with a somewhat withdrawn quality; it doesn't really reach the point where it affects the reader. Overall the book may be of interest to historians but may not be so easily accepted by fantasy book fans.