Turn Coat...it's here, I'm reading and---

[gategrrl]

and damn, it's good. Just what I expected from Jim Butcher.

More later. Right now, I'm licking it up, page by page.

Comments

[forcryinoutloud.livejournal.com]

::is totally jealous:: :P I can't wait to get Turn Coat! O_o

[nialla]

I just finished it.

Jim's an utter bastard.

And I mean that in a good way. *g*

[gategrrl.livejournal.com]

I admit that I fell to my "read the last chapter" disease while in the bookstore two days ago while I was waiting for my SFBC copy to arrive (which it did, yesterday) and I have to tell you, it's rare that the ending of a book makes me want to read it all the MORE, instead of killing my desire to read it.

I like his rendition of the skinwalker, though. Brrr. And the way Morgan killed one in the 50s? Way beyond cool, but scary as hell.

[nialla]

You read the last chapter? I have a couple of friends in my book club who do that, while the rest of us are appalled. ;)

Morgan is badass personified. That's one reason he still terrifies Harry to this day. It's not just intimidation, it's knowing he will follow through with total badassery if necessary.

[gategrrl.livejournal.com]

Oh! And Toot-toot! Toot-toot's in the book!

And Bob just showed up before I fell asleep. I was disappointed at how minimally he's been in it so far, but honestly I only realized he was missing a chapter before he showed up. JB really knows how to keep up a pace.

[nialla]

You know the backstory about the creation of Bob? I don't want to bore you with it if you've already heard the tale.

I think Jim's trying to continually shake things up instead of going through the same routine every book like so many series do, where there's no real progression in plot or characterization.

This book just completely reset the playing field, gave us a new rule book with large portions redacted, plus revealed hints of mystery in the backstory that could completely shift our thinking all over again.

I repeat: Utter. Bastard.

[gategrrl.livejournal.com]

What's the backstory? I don't think I've heard it.

He succeeds in shaking things up and mixing the characters around. And it does keep the books from getting boring and completely formulaic.

I'll have to reread for the hints in backstory, though. My memory is a sieve.

[gategrrl.livejournal.com]

Er, do you mean in the book, or in real life? (about Bob) The book's story of Bob I know.

[nialla]

In real life. The creation of Bob was sort of a smartass student's way of tweaking his college writing teacher and her advice to not have "talking heads" spouting facts.

It's often a sign of lazy writing to have a character tell everything instead of showing it develop within the storyline. ::cough::Stargate::cough::

So of course Jim gets it in his brain to write a character that's literally a talking head, designed to do nothing but dole out information.

My memory is often a sieve on details, but sometimes discussion will spark a thought where I can recall something I'd forgotten, or see things in a different light. It's one reason I like to read other's reviews of tv shows -- they probably saw something I missed, or remembered something from a previous episode I'd forgotten.

[gategrrl.livejournal.com]

Oh! Okay, an infodumper joke--I get that. :-D

[nialla]

It's rare that an author can create a talking head that works, but to make one that's a fan favorite is probably icing on a certain writing student's cake. *g*