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50books_poc2009-03-30 05:10 pm
sparkymonster.livejournal.com) wrote in 50books_poc2009-03-30 05:10 pm
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Marjorie Liu: "Dirk & Steele" (paranormal romance) and "Hunter's Kiss" (urban fatnasy)
It's paranormal romance time! Marjorie Liu is one of my favorite finds from last year. She is an Asian-American author and a geek/fan. She mentions on her site that she has written fanfic. She attended Clarion East. in 2004. She loves poodles (and sometimes carries them in doggie backpack carriers). She is basically fantastic, and writes excellent paranormal romances. Her books consistently have POC in them who are interesting, fully fleshed out, and she never uses creepy food metaphors to describe them.
Dirk and Steele series
Book 1 - Tiger Eye
He looks completely out of place in Dela Reese’s Beijing hotel room—like the tragic hero of some epic tale, exotic and poignant. He is like nothing from her world, neither his variegated hair nor his feline yellow eyes. Yet Dela has danced through the echo of his soul, and she knows this warrior would obey.
Hari has been used and abused for millennia; he is jaded, dull, tired. But upon his release from the riddle box, Hari sees his new mistress is different. In Dela’s eyes he sees a hidden power. This woman is the key. If only he dares protect, where before he has savaged; love, where before he’s known hate. For Dela, he will dare all.
Woo! So uh. Dela gets a box which contains a magical immortal warrior who is v. v. hot. Also, he can shapeshift into a tiger. Shut up, it's awesome. Seriously. Liu does a good job of describing the details of the shapeshifter, magic, etc. without delivering huge info dumps. I also enjoyed that the heroine in the book is intelligent and competent. I got really engrossed in the story and, while I knew Dela and Hari would end up together, the actual plot was original and interesting. Another interesting elements, which I thought of more later, is that the lead character may be middle eastern. His origins are kind of lost in time, but to me it was implied that his tribe came from areas that we would now consider the middle east. I would say his ethnic background is ambiguous because his primary identification is as a shape shifter, and since he's thousands of years old modern ideas about race and ethnicity don't quite apply. Also, did I mention he's kind of part tiger?
Book 2 - Shadow Touch
Elena Baxter can work miracles with her fingers. She can coax bones to knit, flesh to heal. She can mend the soul. She has been doing such work for almost all of her twenty-eight years. That is why she will be taken.
The media called it a rampage of terror, the recent murders. But fighting crime is why Artur Loginov joined Dirk & Steele. The international detective agency specializes in the impossible, and their creed is simple: Help those in need, no matter how difficult, and no matter what, keep the secret safe. For the agency helps its employees, too; people like Artur—the gifted, the tormented. Dirk & Steele gave the Russian emigre purpose, protection, community...and refuge from his past, for who can trust a man who can start a fire with his mind, or shape-shift, or read others’ thoughts as easily as drawing breath? For his similar talent, Artur will be taken.
Into the darkness Elena and Artur will be drawn, into the clutches of evil. Cornered, isolated, caged, they will fight for their very souls. But salvation awaits. it exists in a form least expected: a dream of a face, a brush of a mind, the hint of a kiss, and finally, at long last, a shadow touch.
Muahahaha! Artur can read people's minds, and can also read psychic impressions. Elena can heal with a touch. Together they....get imprisoned in a creepy lab by evil people who want to experiment on them for nefarious purposes. This book is more dark/grim than "Tiger Eye" because it is mostly set in the creepy underground lab of evil. That said, I really enjoyed it. This book is crammed with multiple types of paranormal elements (shape shifters, psychic powers, and magic), and we get bonus mysterious organizations and conspiracies. I love that shit. We're also introduced to a morally ambiguous character, Rictor, who reappears in later books as well.
Book 3 - The Red Heart of Jade
The grisly murders are just the beginning. Dean Campbell, ex-cop and clairvoyant, is sent to investigate. He is with the Dirk & Steele Detective Agency, that global association of more-than-human men and women. Shapeshifters, psychics and other paranormals, Dean and his peers are devoted to protecting life. But there are those who live to destroy.
In Taipei, he finds the remains of burned-alive men and women, bits of bone and ash, that reveal a pattern far more deadly than any he has foreseen. Someone knows Dean’s secret. And they know more—of a power that can change the world, and of a woman who can complete him: Mirabelle Lee, the childhood sweetheart he’d once thought dead. Now, all that remains was blinding light and searing pain, potent passion and a purifying fire. And beneath it all is…The Red Heart of Jade.
This is Liu's first book with a POC female lead. Mirabelle Lee is a Chinese-American woman, scientist, and all around awesome character. When reading the book I kept on thinking how this kind of character is who I want in all my romance novels. She's intelligent, she's got her shit together, she doesn't abandon everything for her man, etc. etc. \0/ Dean is also an interesting character who is kind of fucked up, and is aware of that. I also really like that Liu talks about cross cultural issues without making it into a huge issue to overcome. I wasn't as thrilled with how the book's plot came together though. There was all this lead up, mystery, running around the world and then...eh. It was a decent read just not WOO!
Book 5 - Eye of Heaven
When Blue, an electrokinetic and a member of the Dirk & Steele detective agency, is sent to Las Vegas to track down his half-brother, he finds himself embroiled in an organ smuggling plot - and protecting a young beauty who is more than she appears.
Shapeshifting! Big cats! The circus! Psychic powers which go haywire when someone is really upset! Family mysteries! Farsi! RUNNING AWAY TO AND FROM THE CIRCUS!!! Evil manipulative father! LONG LOST BROTHERS AT THE CIRCUS OMG!
Right then. This book was a really fun quick read. It didn't really stay with me (other than CIRCUS) but it was enjoyable while it lasted. I really liked Blue's storyline with his evil manipulative dad.
Book 6 - Soul Song
Against her will, Kitala Bell foresees the future. But only deaths, and only violent.
Kitala’s own future is in peril. From the ocean’s depths rises an impossible blend of fantasy and danger, a creature whose voice is seduction incarnate, whose song can manipulate lives the way that Kitala herself manipulates the strings of her violin...even to the point of breaking. He is a prince of the sea, an enigma-a captive stretched to the limit of his endurance by a woman intent on using him for the purest evil. And when survival requires he and Kitala form a closer partnership than either has ever known, the price of their bond will threaten not just their lives but the essence of their very souls.
Yeah so um. THERE IS A MERMAN IN THIS BOOK OMG. A merman/siren/warrior/studpuppy. He's enslaved to an evil witch and forced to do her evil bidding via a magical mind control bracelet. Only the love of a good woman who is also a musician can save him.
I got really hung up on the "wtf he's a siren" aspect of the book. I can't explain why that made my head explode when I was totally fine with men turning into tigers and cheetahs. There are good things about the book. Like that Kitala is a mixed race woman (black and white) and doesn't suffer from tragic mulatto syndrome. Kitala is also from New Orleans, and has a grandmother who practiced vodou. That topic is handled *really* well. When the vodou first came up I started to cringe and braced myself for horrors. And then...it was well done. Liu did her research and handled portraying vodou really well. Authors looking to do have family based vodou in their books, PAY ATTENTION.
So, A+ on portrayals of a mixed race character and vodou. A B- on the male lead being a merman.
Book 7: The Last Twilight
Doctor Rikki Kinn is a virus hunter - one of the best - working in the Congo for the CDC. But when mercenaries attempt to kidnap her in order to prevent an investigation into a new and deadly plague, her boss calls in a favor from the men at Dirk & Steele…
I read this on a recent plane ride. I was *very* nervous about it due to the intense potential for badness. It's set in Africa, the book deals with disease outbreaks in war torn areas, and the lead male is an African man who turns into an animal. Normally I would run from a book with these elements because they so often go so wrong. But I trusted Liu so brought it with me on the flight.
Again, we have an intelligent female scientist who is competent and enjoys her work. Yay! The male lead, Amiri, is a Kenyan shapeshifter (he turns into a cheetah) who left his shifter family to become a teacher. He loves reading and teaching children. Seriously yay. I also enjoyed that various white characters assume that Amiri will be totally at ease in the Congo, and he is annoyed by that assumption since he's from a totally different country and doesn't speak the local native languages.
I thought Liu did a good job of being honest/realistic about the situation in the Congo without straying into disaster porn or "in the heart of darkest Africa.." nonsense. Sadly, many of the reviewers at Amazon and other places really do go there. The books is fairly gory. We get descriptions of an ebola like outbreak, killing bad guys, etc. It's not explicit (I'm squeamish and was OK with it), it's a bit more than I expect in my romance novels.
Hunter's Kiss series
Book 1: The Iron Hunt
Living tattoos: demons of the flesh, turned into flesh, the only family demon hunter Maxine Kiss has left—and the only way she can survive, and fight, the imprisoned demonic army waiting to destroy humanity.
I wanted to like this book a lot. Female demon hunter who has tattoos that cover her entire body. The tattoos are demons who "sleep" during the day (stick to her skin as tattoos) and make her invulnerable. At night, they come off her body. She is vulnerable to being wounded, but her demon buddies can also run around and do stuff for her.
The premise is that 10,000 years ago (or so) all the demons and beasties were locked up in a prison. Maxine is part of a long matrilineal line of demon hunters who track down anyone who escapes and kills them. But now super bad ass entities are getting lose and the entire demonic prison may come tumbling down.
In theory, this book is awesome. In practice, despite being stuck in an airport for hours, this book bored me. I'm a fan of starting in media res except that I kept on thinking I was reading the second book of a series. The plot never made a ton of sense, I'm still confused on the set up of the universe, and meh. I won't be reading the rest of the series.
Dirk and Steele series
Book 1 - Tiger Eye
He looks completely out of place in Dela Reese’s Beijing hotel room—like the tragic hero of some epic tale, exotic and poignant. He is like nothing from her world, neither his variegated hair nor his feline yellow eyes. Yet Dela has danced through the echo of his soul, and she knows this warrior would obey.
Hari has been used and abused for millennia; he is jaded, dull, tired. But upon his release from the riddle box, Hari sees his new mistress is different. In Dela’s eyes he sees a hidden power. This woman is the key. If only he dares protect, where before he has savaged; love, where before he’s known hate. For Dela, he will dare all.
Woo! So uh. Dela gets a box which contains a magical immortal warrior who is v. v. hot. Also, he can shapeshift into a tiger. Shut up, it's awesome. Seriously. Liu does a good job of describing the details of the shapeshifter, magic, etc. without delivering huge info dumps. I also enjoyed that the heroine in the book is intelligent and competent. I got really engrossed in the story and, while I knew Dela and Hari would end up together, the actual plot was original and interesting. Another interesting elements, which I thought of more later, is that the lead character may be middle eastern. His origins are kind of lost in time, but to me it was implied that his tribe came from areas that we would now consider the middle east. I would say his ethnic background is ambiguous because his primary identification is as a shape shifter, and since he's thousands of years old modern ideas about race and ethnicity don't quite apply. Also, did I mention he's kind of part tiger?
Book 2 - Shadow Touch
Elena Baxter can work miracles with her fingers. She can coax bones to knit, flesh to heal. She can mend the soul. She has been doing such work for almost all of her twenty-eight years. That is why she will be taken.
The media called it a rampage of terror, the recent murders. But fighting crime is why Artur Loginov joined Dirk & Steele. The international detective agency specializes in the impossible, and their creed is simple: Help those in need, no matter how difficult, and no matter what, keep the secret safe. For the agency helps its employees, too; people like Artur—the gifted, the tormented. Dirk & Steele gave the Russian emigre purpose, protection, community...and refuge from his past, for who can trust a man who can start a fire with his mind, or shape-shift, or read others’ thoughts as easily as drawing breath? For his similar talent, Artur will be taken.
Into the darkness Elena and Artur will be drawn, into the clutches of evil. Cornered, isolated, caged, they will fight for their very souls. But salvation awaits. it exists in a form least expected: a dream of a face, a brush of a mind, the hint of a kiss, and finally, at long last, a shadow touch.
Muahahaha! Artur can read people's minds, and can also read psychic impressions. Elena can heal with a touch. Together they....get imprisoned in a creepy lab by evil people who want to experiment on them for nefarious purposes. This book is more dark/grim than "Tiger Eye" because it is mostly set in the creepy underground lab of evil. That said, I really enjoyed it. This book is crammed with multiple types of paranormal elements (shape shifters, psychic powers, and magic), and we get bonus mysterious organizations and conspiracies. I love that shit. We're also introduced to a morally ambiguous character, Rictor, who reappears in later books as well.
Book 3 - The Red Heart of Jade
The grisly murders are just the beginning. Dean Campbell, ex-cop and clairvoyant, is sent to investigate. He is with the Dirk & Steele Detective Agency, that global association of more-than-human men and women. Shapeshifters, psychics and other paranormals, Dean and his peers are devoted to protecting life. But there are those who live to destroy.
In Taipei, he finds the remains of burned-alive men and women, bits of bone and ash, that reveal a pattern far more deadly than any he has foreseen. Someone knows Dean’s secret. And they know more—of a power that can change the world, and of a woman who can complete him: Mirabelle Lee, the childhood sweetheart he’d once thought dead. Now, all that remains was blinding light and searing pain, potent passion and a purifying fire. And beneath it all is…The Red Heart of Jade.
This is Liu's first book with a POC female lead. Mirabelle Lee is a Chinese-American woman, scientist, and all around awesome character. When reading the book I kept on thinking how this kind of character is who I want in all my romance novels. She's intelligent, she's got her shit together, she doesn't abandon everything for her man, etc. etc. \0/ Dean is also an interesting character who is kind of fucked up, and is aware of that. I also really like that Liu talks about cross cultural issues without making it into a huge issue to overcome. I wasn't as thrilled with how the book's plot came together though. There was all this lead up, mystery, running around the world and then...eh. It was a decent read just not WOO!
Book 5 - Eye of Heaven
When Blue, an electrokinetic and a member of the Dirk & Steele detective agency, is sent to Las Vegas to track down his half-brother, he finds himself embroiled in an organ smuggling plot - and protecting a young beauty who is more than she appears.
Shapeshifting! Big cats! The circus! Psychic powers which go haywire when someone is really upset! Family mysteries! Farsi! RUNNING AWAY TO AND FROM THE CIRCUS!!! Evil manipulative father! LONG LOST BROTHERS AT THE CIRCUS OMG!
Right then. This book was a really fun quick read. It didn't really stay with me (other than CIRCUS) but it was enjoyable while it lasted. I really liked Blue's storyline with his evil manipulative dad.
Book 6 - Soul Song
Against her will, Kitala Bell foresees the future. But only deaths, and only violent.
Kitala’s own future is in peril. From the ocean’s depths rises an impossible blend of fantasy and danger, a creature whose voice is seduction incarnate, whose song can manipulate lives the way that Kitala herself manipulates the strings of her violin...even to the point of breaking. He is a prince of the sea, an enigma-a captive stretched to the limit of his endurance by a woman intent on using him for the purest evil. And when survival requires he and Kitala form a closer partnership than either has ever known, the price of their bond will threaten not just their lives but the essence of their very souls.
Yeah so um. THERE IS A MERMAN IN THIS BOOK OMG. A merman/siren/warrior/studpuppy. He's enslaved to an evil witch and forced to do her evil bidding via a magical mind control bracelet. Only the love of a good woman who is also a musician can save him.
I got really hung up on the "wtf he's a siren" aspect of the book. I can't explain why that made my head explode when I was totally fine with men turning into tigers and cheetahs. There are good things about the book. Like that Kitala is a mixed race woman (black and white) and doesn't suffer from tragic mulatto syndrome. Kitala is also from New Orleans, and has a grandmother who practiced vodou. That topic is handled *really* well. When the vodou first came up I started to cringe and braced myself for horrors. And then...it was well done. Liu did her research and handled portraying vodou really well. Authors looking to do have family based vodou in their books, PAY ATTENTION.
So, A+ on portrayals of a mixed race character and vodou. A B- on the male lead being a merman.
Book 7: The Last Twilight
Doctor Rikki Kinn is a virus hunter - one of the best - working in the Congo for the CDC. But when mercenaries attempt to kidnap her in order to prevent an investigation into a new and deadly plague, her boss calls in a favor from the men at Dirk & Steele…
I read this on a recent plane ride. I was *very* nervous about it due to the intense potential for badness. It's set in Africa, the book deals with disease outbreaks in war torn areas, and the lead male is an African man who turns into an animal. Normally I would run from a book with these elements because they so often go so wrong. But I trusted Liu so brought it with me on the flight.
Again, we have an intelligent female scientist who is competent and enjoys her work. Yay! The male lead, Amiri, is a Kenyan shapeshifter (he turns into a cheetah) who left his shifter family to become a teacher. He loves reading and teaching children. Seriously yay. I also enjoyed that various white characters assume that Amiri will be totally at ease in the Congo, and he is annoyed by that assumption since he's from a totally different country and doesn't speak the local native languages.
I thought Liu did a good job of being honest/realistic about the situation in the Congo without straying into disaster porn or "in the heart of darkest Africa.." nonsense. Sadly, many of the reviewers at Amazon and other places really do go there. The books is fairly gory. We get descriptions of an ebola like outbreak, killing bad guys, etc. It's not explicit (I'm squeamish and was OK with it), it's a bit more than I expect in my romance novels.
Hunter's Kiss series
Book 1: The Iron Hunt
Living tattoos: demons of the flesh, turned into flesh, the only family demon hunter Maxine Kiss has left—and the only way she can survive, and fight, the imprisoned demonic army waiting to destroy humanity.
I wanted to like this book a lot. Female demon hunter who has tattoos that cover her entire body. The tattoos are demons who "sleep" during the day (stick to her skin as tattoos) and make her invulnerable. At night, they come off her body. She is vulnerable to being wounded, but her demon buddies can also run around and do stuff for her.
The premise is that 10,000 years ago (or so) all the demons and beasties were locked up in a prison. Maxine is part of a long matrilineal line of demon hunters who track down anyone who escapes and kills them. But now super bad ass entities are getting lose and the entire demonic prison may come tumbling down.
In theory, this book is awesome. In practice, despite being stuck in an airport for hours, this book bored me. I'm a fan of starting in media res except that I kept on thinking I was reading the second book of a series. The plot never made a ton of sense, I'm still confused on the set up of the universe, and meh. I won't be reading the rest of the series.
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The Dirk & Steele books do blend together a bit, but I'm a huge sucker for romance series. I really like the intertwined characters and seeing bits of various couples after their book, and wondering which person will get their romance next.
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I'm kind of neutral about romance novels. I like some of them, but there are common tropes that really bug me--Liu mostly avoids them, at least.