Category Archives: books

Harper Perennial Announces "It Devours!: A Night Vale Novel" out 10/17/17

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Today is a day I’ve waited for since the release of the first Welcome to Night Vale novel back in October of 2015. The second Night Vale novel has been announced! And it sounds incredible.

From the authors of the New York Times bestselling novel Welcome to Night Vale and the creators of the #1 international podcast of the same name, comes a mystery exploring the intersections of faith and science, the growing relationship between two young people who want desperately to trust each other, and the terrifying, toothy power of the Smiling God.

Nilanjana Sikdar is an outsider to the town of Night Vale. Working for Carlos, the town’s top scientist, she relies on fact and logic as her guiding principles. But all of that is put into question when Carlos gives her a special assignment investigating a mysterious rumbling in the desert wasteland outside of town. This investigation leads her to the Joyous Congregation of the Smiling God, and to Darryl, one of its most committed members. Caught between her beliefs in the ultimate power of science and her growing attraction to Darryl, she begins to suspect the Congregation is planning a ritual that could threaten the lives of everyone in town. Nilanjana and Darryl must search for common ground between their very different world views as they are faced with the Congregation’s darkest and most terrible secret.

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REVIEW: "1984" by: George Orwell

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What can I say about 1984 that hasn’t already been said? Nothing much, really. It certainly deserves its status as a literary classic. It’s a bit slow, to begin with – the first part is really an exposition dump that’s designed to accomplish the majority of the world-building that occurs throughout the novel – but once it gets started, 1984 moves like an out-of-control freight train; it never stops moving forward.

Winston is an amazingly developed character. He starts off the book as somewhat of a hollow shell, allowing the audience to place themselves in his shoes. But as the novel goes on, he becomes more three dimensional as the audience learns more about him. By the end, we’re examining how we would react if put in the situations that Winston was put in.

As a book designed to make you think and evaluate the trajectory society is going, 1984 succeeds on all counts. And it’s an enjoyable read, too!

(4 out of 5 wands)

REVIEW: "Norse Mythology" by: Neil Gaiman

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Pretty solid retelling of a bunch of Norse mythological tales. Unfortunately, it feels fragmented (as it has to be, since Gaiman elected to be as accurate to the originals as he could). So it ends up feeling like a collection of stories instead of a narrative. Which is fine, it’s not pretending to be a narrative, after all.

(4 out of 5 wands)

REVIEW: "Wicked" by: Gregory McGuire

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Gave up around part 4. Couldn’t bring myself to finish it. It moves at such a slow pace, and I’ve seen the musical (which, while different, is a much more enjoyable experience). This kind of feels dark just for darkness’ sake. Elphaba isn’t all that likable. Neither is Glinda. Or really anyone. It just never gets going, and I couldn’t pay enough attention to it to finish it. I’ll stick with the musical.

(2 out of 5 wands)