Absorbing. Addictive. Fantastic.
588549
More suspense and far better writing than the genre typicals as The DaVinci Code. Worldwide intrigue, mystery, all a reader could ask for.
2825675
Byronic is dark, addictive, and not easily put down. I thoroughly enjoyed the reading experience and could not turn the pages fast enough. The novel combines a contemporary world with myth and lore and I couldn't get enough of it.

The characters of Byronic are unique and well-developed. Chelsea is a great protagonist and an interesting voice. She's strong, but not stereotypical, and has a great personality. She always stayed true to her character, although I did feel that she reacted a bit simply to drawing disturbing images that might just be something more than a figment of her imagination. In addition, I loved the parallels between Geoff and Lord Byron. It allowed for a dark and brooding exterior personality that can be seen in a variety of stories to be unique and unforgettable. Of course, in my humble opinion, the real shining stars of the novel were the creatures of legend.

Yep. I'm on Team Boo Hags and haints on this one. Okay, so maybe I shouldn't quite word it as such, but I did love the concept of the creatures. If you're anything like me as a reader, you fall head over heels for a good example of lore and legend. Well, you won't be disappointed in this novel, which not only has supernatural creatures, but slowly introduces them through a different medium: art. (Yes, it's as awesome as it sounds.)

Byronic really did not have many slow points at all. I was able to devour the novel in about one sitting. If anything, I would have liked to see a bit more of the past. Not all the questions were answered, sure, but that just allows room for more. (No complaints there.) I really enjoyed the read, and recommend the novel to anyone interested.
1855177
Several friends had been recommending this series, and I finally tried it out.  Brilliant.  Simply brilliant.  Excellent writing, narrative, flow, and plotting.  Huge kudos to Gabaldon for the completeness of her scenes, for fabulous detail that never gets in the way of narrative flow, and for avoiding anachronistic thoughts in her characters.  18th c characters don't have 20/21st c thoughts and expectations, which is harder to pull off than you think, and the clash of those often conflicting cross-century thoughts and expectations is a major theme.  Grand fun, late-night page-turning escapist reading crafted by an Eng-lit level author.  Brilliant and totally addictive!
821694
I absolutely adored this book. The setting is wonderful, the characters compelling, and the storyline addictive. I cannot praise the writing style enough, it is truly a page turner, to the point where I was sad whenever I was forced to put it down.

I enjoyed every moment of the adventure this story takes you on, and I look forward to the next in the series with great excitement and anticipation. I encourage you all, whatever your preferred genre or style, pick up a copy of this story  you won't be disappointed. It has something for everyone, its scope is huge, and pleasure can be found at every level; from its simplest state to its most complex. This story is in turn; unique, fresh, fascinating and captivating. If you are looking for something new, something with intrigue and depth, then this is the one.

My sincerest thanks to the author for sharing her wonderful world with me, for letting me get to know her characters, and in advance  for the next in the series I cannot wait to read.
4689212
Phenomenal. Simply phenomenal. How was I unaware of this book for so long?
1831115
Gripping, groundbreaking, literate and Lynchean ... easily as good and addictive as I remembered.
972406
Great, great read. Once I jumped in, I simply could not put this one down. The pacing of the book is very addicting. The way it jumps from character to character and the scope and scale of the story/universe builds over time gets you wanting to swing from one page to the next to see how the piece is going to unfold. There are little folded corners of each character that you catch a glimpse of that adds to their canvas, not only to place archetypes in a sandbox and watch them interact. Everything felt tangible. The description of some of the horror to be found within felt beyond visual representation. Things you can only paint with words. Excellent book all the way through. And the fact that this is a series has me stoked. For an opening book like this to deliver on so many levels is incredible.
2441363
Vivid, alluring, and unforgettable. I couldn't put it down.
3150243
4,5 stars. Exciting, engaging and absorbing. Not easy, but it stimulates your emotions to the maximum. Only the hero can make the decisions more effectively.
1850649
Fantastically good. It's humor and scope reminded me of Middlesex and Bonfire of the Vanities.  The book was hard to put down, but unlike most plot-driven fiction, every single character in The Nix is unforgettable. The book could have ended at three or four different points, but the final few pages were mind-blowing.

The author's ability to get inside his characters' heads is extraordinary. I especially loved the interior monologues of one of Samuel's students, a solipsistic plagiarist named Laura. And the 11-page sentence that describes a video game addict's complete collapse is a masterpiece. Samuel's agent, Periwinkle, perfectly captures the glib amorality of the political enablers who lie to us every day. But the book can also be poignant and offers real insight into relationships and life.

This was an incredibly satisfying reading experience. It's almost impossible to believe that this is actually the author's first published novel. In the right hands - maybe HBO - this could be a great 10 or 20-hour series, but no filmed treatment can ever replace the richness and complexity of this book.
1840667
I read this book in record time - a totally absorbing world! A wonderfully suspenseful fantasy. Adults and teenagers will love it equally.
4964509
Frickin' finger-lickin' to keep the pages turnin' fantastic read. Devoured this in three days (curse you, office work) as the scope and stakes kept getting bigger and bigger -- kids who must figure out how to come to Earth's defense against unrelenting adversaries. Patrick Black has conjured up a brilliant genre-surfing series with homages and elements reminiscent of classics like Ender's Game, the Hunger Games, Harry Potter, Inception, even Japanese mecha tales like Evangelion where bright, independent children must grow up very fast and contend with brutality, the larger world's mystery, lies and half-truths their elders may have told to "protect" them, and their own nascent powers. The writing's cinematic and visual, laced with humor and even at times a touch of poetic imagery, and doesn't take itself too seriously, while telling a great tale where the fun is piecing together the full story from each character's limited view. Best of all, the characters and their voices - especially the female characters like Rae, Naomi, and Kizabel -- resonate with real life, spirit, and strength. Ninth City Burning's a propulsive debut and kicks off what promises to be a great entertainment.
818463
I adored this book. With so many glowing reviews already here there's little left for me to say; I just want to add my voice to the chorus of appreciation.

_Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell_ is a complete delight from beginning to end: vivid characters and a rich alternate 19th-century setting are wrapped up in smooth, confident prose. There are definite shades of Austen in the narrative voice - arch, witty, clever, self-aware - but it's much more than just an intelligent pastiche. It's a tightly-controlled novel with an absorbing plot that simultaneously manages to evoke interesting themes from both its historical (social hierarchy and its discontents, rationality vs. spirituality) and its fantasy (the morality of magic-use) aspects. 'Real-life' characters turn up, but are used carefully and sparingly - and, in the case of Byron, hilariously.

Those who like their books rapid-fire and dare I say a little more obvious may rail against its apparent lack of 'action' - but to do so is to miss the point. This is a book about rather more than just plot (although, frankly, it has plenty of that, too...). It is a character-study and a period-piece, and any dissimilarities with contemporary fiction in terms of pacing are entirely in keeping with the style and form the author intends. You're unlikely to find a more elegant, amusing and intelligent fantasy novel this year. Highly recommended!
2097257
This book is fantastic.  I could not put it down.  It is totally absorbing.  I put my life on hold while I read this book. It is so well written.  I feel like the charecters are my friends and now that I have  finnished reading it, I do miss them.
4027153
I don't read books very often, but when I do they tend to be technical manuals or similar materials.

My dad gave me the first book in the series shortly after it came out.  I was immediately hooked and kept buying each new book in the series as they came out.  Each one has kept me up late, made me late or miss something because I get so absorbed by the book that I cannot put it down.  Mr. Bourne writes in such a way that is incredibly addictive and realistic.  His character isn't unreasonably lucky, and has the same problems any normal person would have.  Even the fictitious things that happen during the story line appear at least possible from their sources of technology.

Again, a superb read and I highly recommend it.
520914
Wow! What a fantastic book this is. True the subject matter is enduringly fascinating, but this brings the stories to life in a totally gripping and encompassing way. It's a sumptuous Bront-fest.

The Bronts' first biographer was, of course, a novelist, and in the wake of Mrs Gaskell - who confessed, as a writer of fiction, to finding it hard to stick to the facts - their story has been adapted, ad infinitum, for stage and screen as well as in books. The Taste of Sorrow is a very welcome addition to that genre and, unlike Mrs Gaskell, Jude Morgan comfortably takes the route of fiction, albeit using vast amounts of what is known to be historical fact. The result is to really bring this remarkable family to life - and indeed to death as early death was a feature both of the times and their upbringing. The novel starts off with the death of their mother, including a suggestion that may raise some hackles that she may have made a pact with the devil for her daughters' future.

The rich style of writing may not be to all modern tastes, but I loved it. I was instantly taken back 150 years - staggering to think that it really was not that long ago - to Haworth and the newly industrialising villages, together with the restrictions on the opportunities for young girls and the horrors of their limited education.

I came to this book with a fair degree of familiarity with the story - but absolutely none is needed. Indeed, you don't even need to know the novels of the Bronts to enjoy this book, although some knowledge undoubtedly helps you to pick up on some of Morgan's themes which were to re-appear in the girls' books (for example, there are several references to madness and attics in Charlotte's musings - which feature heavily in Jane Eyre, Emily stumbles on a dead bird that will feature in Wuthering Hieghts etc). Picking up on these will undoubtedly deepen your enjoyment, but it's absolutely not necessary - this story stands on its own perfectly well.

And don't expect too much to soon about the actual writing of the books - which was eventful in itself given that they felt the need to write under assumed (male) names. Their tentative steps into publishing don't feature until quite late on in the book.

Each sister is clearly defined - as is the relationship between each of them and their brother Branwell. Emily has always been my favourite - but then Wuthering Heights is one of my favourite books! - and this book did nothing to trample on that image. Neither does Morgan take liberties or trample on the facts - as often happens in some historical fiction - but rather he enlivens the facts and brings the story alive.

Great stuff.
2184608
I read a lot, and am always on the lookout for new things.  Although I wouldn't have picked this one up normally - fantasty / future / sci fi is not really my genre - I read it based on a recommendation I would trust.

Wow, it was incredible.  Well-written, fast-paced, creative, and engaging.  You find yourself incredibly connected to the characters, rooting or booing them as needed.  The story continually twists, and although I wanted to reach the conclusion, I didn't want it to end.  I have already picked up the second book in the series, though it's hard to imagine that anything else is going to be this good.