Jolene by Mercedes Lackey

Jolene is the fifteenth book in the Elemental Masters series, which means this would normally need a spoiler alert, but as it is set in America and not Europe there is no need.  You can read this book independently of the rest of the series and still follow along.  The Fire Rose is also set in America, but is not officially part of the series as it was published by Baen and not DAW.

Anna May Jones has always been a sickly child, plagued with a lack of energy and a constant lack of appetite.  It may be just as well, as Anna and her mother sacrifice their fair share of the food to make sure her father is well fed for his work in the mines.  In other places Anna and her mother may have been able to supplement their meals with food grown in a garden, but the town of Soddy is choking on the coal dust that comes from the mine.  One day Anna learns that her parents have plans to send her to her Aunt Jinny, the woman Anna has never met, but who has sent her potions to Anna and her father to try and keep them well.  Anna is anxious, but surely her own kin won't harm her - especially not kin who has sent potions to her mother to sell to help support the family?

Leaving Soddy is a shock in more ways than one- for the first time in her life it feels like Anna can breath, and when she meets her Aunt at the end of her journey she finds that she is not what she expected at all.  Aunt Jinny dresses like a man and takes no nonsense, but she is also generous with what she has and offers to train Anna up so she can set herself up as a Root Woman.  It is more than Anna could ever have hoped for, as a Root Woman she will have a respectable profession and will be able to provide for herself.  Living with her aunt is a breath of fresh air, she soon learns that she has a talent for seeing and using the Glory, which will make it much easier for her to become a Root Woman.  

That power brings her to the attention of a mysterious woman called Jolene, who has taken an interest in Anna and offers to help her learn how to control her abilities.  Anna doesn't need her aunts caution to treat Jolene with respect, and soon learns that she will be more powerful than her aunt when she has finished learning.  To protect herself Anna must learn all she can and come into her full power - because there are people who would use her power for themselves, not matter what the cost is to Anna herself.

I have been looking forward to Jolene for months, mostly because of all the havoc Covid-19 has wreaked - and it seemed like an early Christmas present!  I have to say it was a relief to read a story that is not tangled up with the stories of Sherlock Holmes, a fresh story to discover.  I had never heard the legend/story that Jolene was based on, and it was a real pleasure to have a fresh story and mythology to enjoy.  I loved the way everything was so connected too, Anna and her Glory were not limited to the traditional magic laws of her own people, she was included in the Earth magic that was native to the area too.  I also liked the flow and rhythm of the story - it wasn't rushed and it didn't drag on.  

It was also a treat to have a story set in America again - for some readers the Fire Rose is not part of the story because it was set in America and had a different publisher, but it was the first book that had the same 'world' and rules as the rest of the series.  Hopefully there are more books set in America as it broadens the series and makes it more interesting, fresh and new - a chance to explore stories from other places and cultures.  

If you like this book then try:

• The Fire rose by Mercedes Lackey (not officially part of the series)
• The serpent's shadow by Mercedes Lackey
• The gates of sleep by Mercedes Lackey
• Phoenix and ashes by Mercedes Lackey
• The wizard of London by Mercedes Lackey
• Reserved for the cat by Mercedes Lackey
• Unnatural issue by Mercedes Lackey
• Home from the sea by Mercedes Lackey
• Steadfast by Mercedes Lackey
• Blood red by Mercedes Lackey
• From a high tower by Mercedes Lackey
• A study in sable by Mercedes Lackey
• A scandal in Battersea by Mercedes Lackey
• The bartered brides by Mercedes Lackey
• The case of the spellbound child by Mercedes Lackey

Reviewed by Brilla

Ararat by Christopher Golden

For local guide Feyiz and his extended family, leading groups of climbers up Mount Ararat in Turkey is their business - from the gentler summer months of tramps, through to the more dangerous winter months they know the mountain and her secrets.  When an earthquake storms across the mountain it causes an avalanche that smashes into Feyiz's village, and uncovers a secret that was buried under the snow and ice.  In the aftermath of the earthquake it is a race against time for climbers and scholars to reach the earthquake site first, because the first people to arrive will be able to lay claim to the greatest archaeological find in modern history - a wooden vessel buried on Mount Ararat, a vessel that many believe may be Noah's Ark.  

Everyone who rushed to the mountain has their own motives for being there - and not all of them are as pure as the white snow that coats the mountain.  Ben Walker has been sent to Mount Ararat along with a scholar priest and a UN observer, and none of them are particularly welcome.  The mountain is a hive of activity with people from all fields of science eager to see the wooden structure and any treasures it may hold - but Walker and his team arrive not long after the remains in the coffin are found.  The leaders of the team are keen to keep the remains under wraps, including from most of the team, and once Walker sees the remains he can understand why - they don't look human.

As the weather closes in the group finds themselves trapped on the mountain.  It's not so bad at first, despite the freezing conditions they can carry on with their work - but then the first people disappear.  The first can be explained away as people wanting to leave and taking their chance despite the storm, but then others disappear.  As tensions rise and people start acting with desperation the team starts running out of choices, and clutches at any hope of escape from the increasingly creepy and dangerous mountain.  Can Walker and the rest of the team make it off the mountain safely, or will they be picked off one-by-one until there is no one left?  

2020 has been a pretty solid year of reading crime and rereading favourites for me, so I thought I would branch out a little and read an author I used to read - and after years of reading his Buffy the Vampire Slayer novels, Christopher Golden seemed like a good choice.  When I borrowed it from the local library I almost didn't read it after all because it had a horror label on it - but I am very glad I persevered.  This was one of the few novels I have read this year where I did not want to put it down, wanting to read it in one sitting as it was so addictive.  

This is one of those books where reviewing too much ruins the little twists and surprises that make it such a good book.  The mythology is well thought out and described, and the characters are well developed and well rounded - easy to see as people rather than just characters on a page.  A great read, and I am looking forward to reading more like it from Christopher Golden.

 If you like this book then try:

• Deceptions by Kelley Armstrong
• Eight million gods by Wen Spencer
• Dark descendant by Jenna Black
• Moon called by Patricia Briggs
• Spiders bite by Jennifer Estep
• Prowlers by Christopher Golden
• Dead witch walking by Kim Harrison
• Blood price by Tanya Huff
• Children of the night by Mercedes Lackey
• Cast in shadow by Michelle Sagara

Reviewed by Brilla

1000 tattoos by Chris Coppola

Tattoos are not to everyone's taste, but there are some truly gifted tattooists out there who can bring skin to life with lines, dots, and coloured inks.  Like millions of people around the world I myself have tattoos, and I frequently find myself admiring the ink other people wear (though sometimes I do wonder what other people were thinking when they got theirs!)  Thanks to programmes like Tattoo Fixers I have found myself admiring designs that I never thought I would, especially some of the hyper realistic tattoos one of the Fixers excels at, alongside the beautiful and feminine point work and flowers of another Fixer, and then of course there are the other designs that are simply stunning in their own unique way.  On top of that I have just recently finished reading The tattoo thief by Alison Belsham, which is all about a tattoo artist which has also reignited my interest in tattoos.

The resulting search of the local public library catalogue lead me to 1000 tattoos which is what it sounds like - a book that collects together images of different tattoos.  I was half expecting a random selection of tattoos with a thematic approach, but instead this is a curated collection of art by artist - art that happens to be on skin rather than canvas.  There is something for every taste in this book, from traditional designs incorporated into modern designs through to amazing and vibrant colourwork.  For some parents this book may be their worst nightmare, but it is a great place to start if you are contemplating a tattoo as you can get an overview of different artistic styles, and options in terms of colourwork and black and white.  Even if you are not contemplating getting ink, there is some outstanding artistry between the covers.

1000 tattoos was a fantastic find to stumble across, and I was impressed to find a local tattooist from Auckland included in the international line up.  A real feast for the eyes (and skin) to enjoy.

Reviewed by Brilla

The tattoo thief by Alison Belsham

Marni Mullins is minding her own business, taking a break from tattooing people at a convention in her home town of Brighton when she stumbles across a dead body - the last thing she needs to see, or try and deal with.  Not keen to get tangled up with the Police, Marni makes an anonymous call to alert them to the body and then disappears back into her work.  She should have known that wouldn't keep her off the radar - especially with a newly promoted Detective Inspector leasing the case.  When DI Francis Sullivan tracks Marni down he is almost hostile, demanding her help and threatening her if she doesn't.  Already in a fragile state from finding the body, his demands for help almost push her over the edge - until they come to an uneasy truce when he asks her for help.

Helping the Police after what has happened in the past is not easy for Marni, but she is a connection to world of tattoos and tattooing for the very fresh faced and straight laced DI Sullivan.  When another body is found with the skin cut off it starts to feel like a serial murder case, and DI Sullivan and his team are put under pressure to solve the case.  Being the new kid on the block is always hard, especially when you've stepped over one of the longer serving members of your team, and Sullivan has to push his ideas onto a boss that doesn't want to hear them.  As the case heats up, Sullivan and Marni reach the conclusion that there is a connection to the tattooing world, that the person dubbed the Tattoo Thief by the media is working on a deadly collection.  Can they solve the case before someone Marni knows falls under the killers deadly blade?

As someone who has tattoos this book was both a fascinating and horrifying idea - though my discreet tattoos would not attract the attention of the killer, I do know people who have tattoos that would certainly make a collection happy.  I entered the story with some trepidation, but was soon thoroughly absorbed by the story which is well written and seems to accurately reflect Police practice and procedure (as much as you can pick up from watching TV series and reading books).  Marni is an interesting character complete with flaws and weaknesses that make her seem 100% genuine, and it is hard not to recognise the somewhat cliché character of the earnest young Police officer trying to prove himself in the young DI Sullivan.  The story was well teased out and well paced - there were little bread crumbs to follow, and it was nice to have my suspicions tested along the way.

The tattoo thief is a well written and perfectly paced thriller, different enough to have a unique voice in the crime/thriller market, but familiar enough to be an easy to follow read.  I look forward to reading more from this author.

If you like this book then try:

• Sticks and stones by Katherine Firkin
• Sweet little lies by Caz Frear
• The vanishing season by Joanna Schaffhausen
• Killing trail by Margaret Mizushima
• Safe by S.K. Barnett
• The nowhere child by Christian White
• Good me bad me by Ali Land
• The coast to coast murders by James Patterson and J.D.Barker
• Eeny meeny by M.J. Arlidge
• Nine Elms by Robert Bryndza
• The better sister by Alafair Burke
• Gathering dark by Candice Fox
• Spare me the truth by C.J. Carver

Reviewed by Brilla