Wulf's Book Reviews

2020 on Goodreads by Various My rating: 4 of 5 stars If you consider the fact that I usually don’t read books that have an average rating below 4.00 on GoodReads, you’ll find when looking at my year in books that I actually awarded 3.5 stars on average. That makes a lot of sense to me as 2020 has been a difficult year on many levels for me. I read the amazing “ Herkunft ” by Saša Stanišić , though, and that was definitely one of the highlights of my reading year. Looking things over, I remember how travel-memoir writer Tony James Slater rekindled my interest in science fiction by writing his series “ The Ancient Guardians ” of which I read the final instalments in 2020, e. g. Warden's Fate . Those led me to the unforgettable “ Murderbot Diaries ” by Martha Wells which I’ve practically devoured! Encouraged by these reading experiences, I decided to move on to “ Leviathan Wakes ” of the “ The Expanse ” series by James S.A. Corey . I was struggling with it as you can read in my r...

Die Bagage by Monika Helfer My rating: 3 of 5 stars Der Literaturkritiker Denis Scheck hat dieses Buch empfohlen (“Auf nur 160 Seiten entfaltet die Autorin Monika Helfer eine beeindruckende und gehaltvolle Geschichte über Familienstrukturen und Beziehungen.”) und sein Wort hat für mich Gewicht. Wie so oft, wenn’s dem Esel zu wohl wird, naja, Ihr wißt schon… Das Problem dieses kurzen Büchleins ist, daß es die einerseits sehr persönlich erzählte Familiengeschichte der Autorin ist. Helfer beantwortet darin sich und uns die Frage “Woher komme ich?”. Das deutet aber auch bereits mein erstes Problem an: Diese Frage habe ich mir in bezug auf die Autorin nie gestellt. Ihre persönliche Antwort läßt mich daher weitgehend kalt. Parallel kommt hinzu, daß es - zumindest meinen Lese-Erfahrungen zufolge - kein seltenes Schicksal ist: Familie auf dem Dorf am Ende der Welt vor gut 100 Jahren - zur Zeit des Ersten Weltkrieges. Die Frau, Helfers Großmutter Maria, ist nicht landläufig (sic) “normal”...

Wilder Girls by Rory Power My rating: 1 of 5 stars (“Why me?!”, impromptu art by my daughter when I asked her to do something for me) “Why me?!”, I asked my wife, “Why do I always have to choose the worst books?!” - with the prettiest covers, I might add. Because this book is a classic example why you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover – which, in this case, is beautiful whereas the contents read like they’ve partly been ripped out of the script to some mediocre horror b-movie and partly been born out of the brain of a pubescent teenager. Maybe a sadistic ecology freak was on-board as well because at times the book reads like something along the lines of “nature strikes back”. The plot is simple and the premise interesting: A female-only boarding school on a small island; “the Tox”, some kind of plague, ravaging the wildlife, the girls and their teachers. Hetty, Byatt and Reese, three pupils and friends, are trying to survive. Suddenly, when Byatt vanishes Hetty lear...

Abaddon's Gate by James S.A. Corey My rating: 5 of 5 stars Wow, what a ride! After the excellent “ Leviathan Wakes ” and the almost equally great “ Caliban's War ” here I’m sitting and wondering what to write about this more than worthy successor… When I first encountered the "The Expanse" series , I was sceptical: - I do not like science fiction literature. - I do not like soap operas (so why would I like a “Space Opera”?) - I do not like author’s killing off their heroes (GRRM, I’m looking at you!) What I came to realise, though, is that James S.A. Corey has extremely interesting stories to tell and the means to seemingly effortlessly tell them in a way that keeps me coming back for more. As in its predecessors, in “Abaddon's Gate” the alien protomolecule plays a major role and, of course, Holden, Naomi, Alex and Amos are with us again, too. In addition, we get to meet new people like Bull, an OPA operative, Anna, a preacher, and yet another member of the...

Pile of Bones by Michael J. Sullivan My rating: 4 of 5 stars This is a short story about Suri and Minna from Michael’s “ The Legends of the First Empire ” series which I highly recommend to any fantasy fan. With 36 pages and about 10.000 words it’s a very short piece but it nicely “showcases” some of the “features” of the series which is currently comprised of four full length novels and two more in the making (not like Rothfuss or Martin, though…). I’m usually not all that great a fan of short stories but I enjoyed this one. View all my reviews https://turing.mailstation.de/pile-of-bones-the-legends-of-the-first-empire-0-5-by-michael-j-sullivan/?feed_id=436&_unique_id=62e164cfa8f97

Lords of the North by Bernard Cornwell My rating: 4 of 5 stars » I had a taste for this kind of madness. In madness lies change, in change is opportunity, and in opportunity are riches. « I had every intention to temporarily remove myself from the amazing literary maelstrom this series has proven to be for me but, alas, when I looked through the books I actually intended to read right now, I kept feeling drawn to “ Lords of the North ”, the third instalment in Bernard Cornwell's “ Saxon Stories ”. This time, we accompany Uthred to the north where he meets Guthred, another king who plays Uthred almost as well as Alfred does. We also see Uthred clash with his arch-enemy, Kjartan the Cruel, and the latter’s son, Sven the One-Eyed. As usual Uthred keeps curious company: From Finnan whom Uthred meets in captivity (the one part of the book that didn’t engage as much as the rest (just like in the TV series!)) to Sithric up to Saint Cuthbert himself and, quite literally, parts of Sa...

Blutbuch by Kai Meyer My rating: 3 of 5 stars “ Familien sind Bücher, die mit Blut geschrieben werden. Die Erinnerung an den Anfang schwindet, je näher man dem Ende kommt. Die vorderen Seiten mögen vom Gewicht der hinteren erdrückt werden, aber jedes Blutbuch braucht sämtliche Seiten mit all ihren Makeln, um vollständig zu sein. ” Es gibt keinen Zweifel: Kai Meyer schreibt (meist) sehr, sehr schön und kann sowohl spannend und schnell als auch mitreißend und mit “Tiefgang”. Den ersten Teil dieser Trilogie, “ Die Seiten der Welt ”, habe ich im Herbst 2015 gelesen und mich sofort in diese wunderbare Welt verliebt. Mit phantastischen (sic!) Einfällen, viel Charme und Warmherzigkeit zog mich die Magie des Romans schnell in ihren Bann. Auch den zweiten Teil, “ Nachtland ”, habe ich im Frühjahr 2016 sehr gern gelesen. Tatsächlich finden sich beide Bücher in meinen Favoriten wieder. Nun ist es 2019, mehr als drei Jahre nach meinem letzten Ausflug zwischen die Seiten der Welt. Fu...

The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah My rating: 5 of 5 stars I had finished a nice-enough book and was looking for the next good read. My wife chose from my list for me and picked this one. She chose well. » Books had always been her solace; novels gave her the space to be bold, brave, beautiful, if only in her own imagination. « This book drew me in, chewed me up and spit me out. If a book really “speaks” to me, I step into it. I stop being a reader and become a silent, helpless bystander, a powerless observer. Give me a book that’s well-written, serious and empathetic and I’m in trouble. Elsa lives in Texas during the Great Depression. Cast out by her own parents for “dishonoring” them (by conceiving a child without being married), she is forced to marry her child’s father and live on his family’s farm. » Elsa had discovered within herself a nearly bottomless capacity for love. « Against everyone’s expectations - hers not the least - she not only settles in but learns to love her ...

When We Cease to Understand the World by Benjamín Labatut My rating: 1 of 5 stars This is one of the very few books I’m not finishing. Let me explain why: The problem with this one is that Benjamín Labatut introduces the history of an invention to us. Let’s take the first story on “Prussian Blue” as an example: Labatut starts by shortly describing the invention itself and what lead to it. He then proceeds to tell us about the inventor(s) and how they relate to each other and the world. Labatut does this, and that’s my first issue, at break-neck speed. He drops name after name after name and forms connections between them in rarely more than a single sentence. It’s exhausting and not very illuminating. Much worse, though, whenever there’s insufficient historical evidence Labatut chooses the most lurid and raciest possible explanation. For example Fritz Haber’s (Haber played a most prominent role in chemical warfare) wife, Clara Immerwahr , did commit suicide - but the reasons ar...

Relic by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child My rating: 4 of 5 stars “ Every sixty to seventy million years or so, life starts getting very well adapted to its environment. Too well adapted, perhaps. There is a population explosion of the successful life forms. Then, suddenly, a new species appears out of the blue. It is almost always a predatory creature, a killing machine. It tears through the host population, killing, feeding, multiplying. Slowly at first, then ever faster. ” “Relic” was a fast and easy read: New York City’s Natural History Museum has already had its share of dark rumours about a “Museum Beast” when two kids are found brutally murdered in the basement of the museum. And further deaths follow… Thus, Lieutenant D’Agosta from the local Police department takes the lead in the investigation, closely followed by FBI agent Pendergast from New Orleans who knows the killer’s modus operandi from a previous case. Furthermore, there are Margo Green, a graduate st...

Burning Alexandria by Michael J. Sullivan My rating: 4 of 5 stars Basically, the blurb says it all – a (book) hoarder in a post-apocalyptic world lives among his tons of books and realises he’ll have to burn some of them. Unfortunately, he’s not the brightest bulb (not even in a world without power!) and, thus, disaster happens. This is a nice-ish short story without any connection to Michael’s other works. It pretty much lives from the setting (books filling a small house entirely – sans a few “paths” - lovely though in theory!), the “name-dropping” (all the big post-modern names appear) and the central dilemma of burning books. The latter is this short story’s saving grace in my book because as Heinrich Heine, the great German poet, wrote as early as 1823 (and, thus, eerily predicting the Holocaust): "Dort wo man Bücher verbrennt, verbrennt man auch am Ende Menschen.” ("Where books are burned, in the end, people will also be burned.") Might be worth a r...

The Pale Horseman by Bernard Cornwell My rating: 4 of 5 stars “ The Pale Horseman ”, book two in Bernard Cornwell's “ Saxon Stories ”, picks up right where we left Uthred in “ The Last Kingdom ”. The Danes overrun Wessex and King Alfred has to hide in a swamp. And that’s my one small gripe about this book: We get to know that swamp pretty damn well. Large parts of “Horseman” take place in the swamp and it’s a bleak place. Apart from that there’s everything the first book had: Action, battles, betrayal, politics! It adds new and exciting characters (Iseult!), places, intrigues and much more. At its core, “Horseman” is, fortunately, more of the same as “The Last Kingdom” and if you liked that one, it’s highly likely you’ll enjoy this one, too. Now, you’ll have to excuse me again because right after the last page of this book, I started reading its successor and had a hard time making room for writing this! Four out of five stars! Ceterum censeo Putin esse delendam View all my...

The Maid by Nita Prose My rating: 1 of 5 stars From whatever point of view: This is a disgrace of a book. Let’s look at the story itself first: Molly, usually referred to and sometimes self-referring as “Molly the Maid” (as if that’s all she is), works as a maid in the Regency Grand Hotel. One day, when she’s cleaning a suite she finds the body of Mr. Black, a rich “power magnate”, who stays at the hotel with his second wife, Giselle. While it becomes clear to the reader very quickly that something sinister beyond the murder is afoot, Molly doesn’t recognise it and, thus, quickly becomes the prime suspect in the murder case. Trying to prove Molly’s innocence Molly and a bunch of coworkers-cum-friends come up with a plan to entrap the true culprit… So, there’s basically nothing new plot-wise. It is unoriginal and rather boring. What about the character’s, though? We get to “meet” about 20 people - which is quite a lot but, thankfully, it’s manageable. The problem here is, though: ...

24-го февраля 2022 года российская армия вторглась в соседнюю Украину по приказу президента России Владимира Путина. Вымышленными поводами для кровавого диктатора и военного преступника Путина стали якобы “многочисленные преступле ния против гражданских лиц, включая граждан Российской Федерации”, необходимость демилитаризации и “денацификации” Украины, предотвращение экспансии НАТО на восток. Все эти лживые утверждения не оправдывают действия Путина, его правительства и армии. На мой взгляд, следует поприветствовать тот факт, что значительная часть свободного мира поддерживает Украину, прим еняя санкции к агрессору, оказывая военную и гуманитарную помощь и т.д. В то же время Украина постоянно пытается наладить переговорный процесс с Россией, чтобы найти мирное решение. Я сом неваюсь, что это сработает. Очевидно, Путин понимает только язык насилия. По этой причине я считаю, что текущий уровень поддержки Украины Западом недостаточен: в Украине, в самом сердце Европы, люди защищают н...

The Untold Story by Genevieve Cogman My rating: 5 of 5 stars » And here in the Library, even if our outer layer is order, we have an inner heart of chaos. We read too much for it to be anything else. « When I first encountered “ The Invisible Library ” I was intrigued: A library beyond space and time; an autonomous realm that sends out its spies to “acquire” unique books in order to safeguard the balance between chaos and order not in just one world but all worlds! Dragons, Fae, Librarians - what a premise! Adventures abound! As someone who loves every single “ingredient” here, I simply had no chance but to read the first book - and, ultimately, the entire series . Don’t get me wrong: The premise is perfect whereas the actual execution isn’t always. Nevertheless, I loved reading every single instalment and it was with eagerness and a dose of sadness that I went on reading this “season finale” as Cogman calls it. And what a finale this was! Sent out on a seemingly impossible assig...

The Last Kingdom by Bernard Cornwell My rating: 5 of 5 stars First “Vikings” came along and rekindled my interest. Next I stumbled upon “The Last Kingdom” and I was done for - Uthred, a hero, between both worlds - Dane and West Saxon. A guy whose survival to old age tells us we can rest assured he will survive whatever fate (which is all!) throws in his way. Intelligence, courage, boldness, daring, audacity! All “mixed” into one man, one hero! Irresistible! Bloody battles, cunning, betrayal, you name it, it’s all here. Written in long, flowing chapters including stirring descriptions of the land and its people. King Alfred of Wessex, pious yet clever, ensnaring Uthred into his service time after time. Raw, mediaeval and wild! Highly recommended to anyone liking historical fiction and can stomach a very “generous” share of violence. Five out of five stars and now please excuse me while I devour the next instalment. Ceterum censeo Putin esse delendam View all my reviews https:/...

Risen by Benedict Jacka My rating: 4 of 5 stars In this final instalment of the Alex Verus series , we accompany Alex on his “farewell tour” and the final siege that will decide the fate of all mages - Dark and White - in Great Britain. Over the run of the previous 11 (!) books Alex has had a formidable run: From a former Dark apprentice and shop owner he has risen to become a major force among mages in Britain. He has made a few friends (most of whom we encounter in this book) as well as many enemies (most of whom we also encounter in this book). His girlfriend Anne has been possessed by a Djinn and needs rescuing, his former master, Richard Drakh, wants to use him for purposes unclear so far and, last but not least, Alex - who bonded with Fateweaver by making it a replacement hand - finds himself being “overtaken” by his artificial hand. So, a lot of issues and unless you’ve read the previous few books at least, this won’t be a book for you. Furthermore, it has to be said that...

Saving Francesca by Melina Marchetta My rating: 5 of 5 stars “ And when I finish speaking, I kiss her cheek and I take away the tray. And it’s empty. That’s how we begin. ” The “Young Adult” genre and I rarely get along. Call it a generation gap, I suppose, because, let’s face it, at 43 I’m not really the target audience of YA anymore. In fact, my very first note about this book was “I don't feel like reading about school girls”. And, yet, there are some YA books that still appeal to me, e. g. “ The Fault in Our Stars ” by John Green . “Francesca” – like many books recently – somehow ended up on my “to be read” list and when it was their time, I had long forgotten why I wanted to read this. Encouraged by wife (hey, C.!) who had just finished reading it, I just jumped into it. The story is pretty simple: Francesca Spinelli is the daughter of a mother with an academic background and profession and a father who works as a builder. Finally, there’s Francesca’s younger bro...

Meine Bewertung: 3 von 5 Sternen Ich habe mir vorgenommen, dieses Buch zu lesen - und hoffentlich zu lieben -, weil es von den meisten meiner GoodReads-Freunde und meiner Tochter (die allerdings den Film liebt) in den höchsten Tönen gelobt wurde. So vorbereitet, begab ich mich auf diese literarische Reise und war schnell verwirrt: Sophie wird von der Hexe aus dem Niemandsland verflucht? Warum? Und sie steht einfach auf, geht raus, ohne nachzudenken, und stolpert über das titelgebende Wandelnde Schloss ? Häh? Sie nimmt jeden Mist hin, der auf sie zukommt, denn " Sophie war sowieso eine Versagerin. Das kommt davon, wenn man die Älteste ist. "? Entschuldigung, wie bitte?! Jede lächerliche und absurde Situation, die sich im Laufe des Buches ergibt, lässt sich so zusammenfassen, wie es Howl gegen Ende des Buches tut: "Ich bin die Älteste!", kreischte Sophie. "Ich bin ein Versager!" "Müll!", brüllte Howl. "Du hörst einfach nie auf zu d...

Meine Bewertung: 3 von 5 Sternen " Und ich habe eine Frau, die die Entscheidungen trifft, die meine Garderobe vervollständigen, die Dinge wie Sandalen und Socken auswählt. Ich muss mir also nie wieder Gedanken darüber machen. " Diejenigen, die mich etwas besser kennen, wissen, dass ich mich vor etwa 27 Jahren in Linux verliebt habe. Im März 1995 wurde IBM OS/2 Warp durch (ich glaube) DLD - die Deutsche Linux-Distribution - ersetzt und ich war… frei. " Als ich las und begann, Unix zu verstehen, bekam ich einen großen Begeisterungsschock. Offen gesagt, es hat nie nachgelassen. (Ich hoffe, Sie können dasselbe über etwas sagen.) " Wie könnte ich nicht die Person bewundern, mit der alles begann - Linus Torvalds. Torvalds ist nur ein paar Jahre älter als ich, und es hat mich gefreut und sehr amüsiert, dass ich ihn in der ersten Hälfte des Buches sehr sympathisch fand. Sei es... " Es wird wahrscheinlich niemanden überraschen, dass einige meiner frühesten und g...

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir My rating: 5 of 5 stars Just when I thought Andy Weir was a “one-hit wonder” for his great and exciting “ The Martian ”, he comes along and writes something that completely blew away my mind. “Project Hail Mary” is spectacularly well done, features even more “scientific vibes” and despite being deeply rooted in science fiction, everything in this book feels (shockingly) plausible and believable. Earth is dying from climate change… Dr. Ryland Grace, a grumpy (ex-)scientist gone school teacher, is Earth’s last line of defense and her last hope. As part of the crew of the interstellar spaceship “Hail Mary”, tasked with finding a solution for the afore-mentioned climate change issue, Grace ships out into space. How this came to be and Grace’s exploits in space are narrated alternatingly (mostly) between chapters. First, we learn how Grace wakes up after an induced coma and then - by witnessing his memory coming back in flashbacks - the book tells the e...

Call Us What We Carry by Amanda Gorman My rating: 5 of 5 stars » I am the daughter of Black writers. I am descended from freedom fighters who broke their chains and changed the world. They call me. I carry them always. « (From “Gratitude”) I’m not sure what to say or write about this collection of Amanda Gorman ’s poetry. Any words I could find would still fall short to describe how amazing and emotionally moving, intellectually brilliant, witty and intelligent this is. " This book, like a ship, is meant to be lived in. " Gorman writes and there's so much life in " Call Us What We Carry "! When I started reading this collection, I thought it would be a quick read but after stumbling onto this “ship” with this misconception, from early on I found myself reading this carefully, slowly, maybe even reverently. Most often not more than one poem at a time. I long thought poetry had ceased being relevant since Shakespeare's sonnets but Gorman made me change m...

Mr. Parnassus' Heim für magisch Begabte 5/5 Aus einer Welt, die sich offensichtlich von der unseren unterscheidet (dort gibt es Magie und magische Wesen!), aber eng mit der unseren verwandt ist, wird uns in T.J. Klunes "Das Haus im Cerulean-Meer" ein modernes Märchen über ein Waisenhaus und seine Bewohner erzählt. Linus Baker, ein Sachbearbeiter des "Department in Charge Of Magical Youth", wird beauftragt, ein Waisenhaus unter den Fittichen von Arthur Parnassus zu untersuchen, der sich um das Wohlergehen von sechs besonders gefährlichen Waisenkindern kümmert - eines von ihnen ist das Kind des Teufels! Doch was Linus entdeckt, ist ganz anders, als er erwartet hat… Dies ist in erster Linie ein Buch über Freundlichkeit und Liebe. Es gibt nicht viel "Action", denn es ist ein Buch, das von der Liebe lebt, die es ausstrahlt: Da ist der "Herr" des Hauses, Arthur, der mehr ein Lehrer, ein Beichtvater, eine Vaterfigur für sein...

Her Silent Cry by Lisa Regan My rating: 3 of 5 stars In this sixth instalment of Regan’s Josie Quinn series a child is abducted in a rather complex way and more “surprises” await Josie and her team during the investigation because not everything is as it looks at the beginning… At least it’s not like it looks to Josie or anyone on her team because very early on there is a horrible give-away as to the reasons of the abduction which made me see a lot of the things to come right from the start. That was a huge let-down and while there’s still a lot of suspense, it severely detracted from the potential this book showed. This is especially disappointing for me as I’ve really enjoyed “following” Josie during her cases so far. While the books in this series never had much depth and were at no point intellectually challenging, they were suspenseful, often surprising and never dull. Compared to other cases, though, this one – while not exactly dragging on – isn't quite as fa...