Book Review: "The Wrong Stuff" by MT McGuire

The Wrong Stuff by M.T. McGuire

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Book Info: Genre: Science Fantasy Epic Thriller
Reading Level: Adult
Recommended for: Fans of British comedy AND epic fantasy AND science-fiction/fantasy thrillers AND good stories! Well... most people, I think.
Trigger Warnings: violence, repression, torture and murder (implied/offscreen as well as actual/onscreen)

My Thoughts: Based on the page count on my Nook, this second book in the K'Barthan trilogy is about twice as long as the first.

I managed to go through the whole first book without really noticing it, but then Corporal Puneschment showed up, and I suddenly realized that General Moteurs was a pun. As well as Sir Robin Get, and DI Phillip Softone. I think DC May Gurney might be, too, but I'm not sure. As should be well obvious by now, I'm sort of dim about things like that.
Don't always catch really subtle things. And of course we don't learn General Moteurs' first name until this book (it's Ford)... Anyway, there were times during the book when I wanted to shake The Pan for his obstinate inability to see the obvious... and then I would remember General Moteurs, and realize The Pan and I are really two of a kind... Alas, The Pan is for Ruth, and what an adorable couple they make!

Anyway, I loved this second book in the series. The Pan really comes into his own, and while we don't have quite as much of the delightful Ava and Gladys and Their Trev, Lucy was a great addition, and we had more Big Merv. Not to mention we learn a lot more about him, and about the Grongles and Grongolia in general. I can really see the growth of the writer here, and can not WAIT for book 3! This is like if a heroic epic fantasy were mixed with a science-fiction thriller, and I just love the dry British humor intertwined. Really, very highly recommended.

I have a number of McGuire's short stories I would like to read, but because I'll be in and out all day, and it will be difficult to do the reviews properly, I'll have to put those off for another day. However, watch for my reviews of those soon.

Series Information: The K'Barthan Trilogy
Prequel: Unlucky Dip, review linked here where formatting allowed.
Book 1: Few are Chosen, review linked here where formatting allowed.
Book 2: The Wrong Stuff
Book 3: One Man, No Plan tentatively scheduled for Christmas 2013

Disclosure: I received a copy of this e-book from the author in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Synopsis: The Pan of Hamgee is not a natural knight in shining armour. Yet he has escaped from police custody in K’Barth, switched realities and foiled Lord Vernon’s attempt to kidnap Ruth, the Chosen One from the Festival Hall. Pretty good, he thinks.

However, Ruth thinks otherwise. Being pursued by Lord Vernon is bad enough. Now, thanks to The Pan, she’s on the run. They are both alive, of course, but with Lord Vernon on their tail neither of them can be sure how long for.

To save her life The Pan must introduce Ruth, the woman of his dreams, to the person prophesied to be the man of hers. And he knows he must do it fast. Before Lord Vernon finds her. But the gentleman in question is in hiding and no-one knows where. Can The Pan find him? And if he does, can he bring himself to unite them?



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Book Review: "Cobra Gamble": Cobra War Book 3 by Timothy Zahn

Cobra Gamble: Book 3 of the Cobra War trilogy review
Author: Timothy Zahn
5 out of 5 stars

Book Info: Genre: Military Science Fiction Reading Level: Adult
Book Available: Audible Edition available now. Mass Market Paperback to be released Dec. 25, 2012. Hardcover edition is now out of print, but copies are still available through Amazon Marketplace.

Disclosure: I received a free paperback galley edition of this book from the Amazon.com Vine program in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis: Cobras warriors, technologically enhanced and implanted with an arsenal of covert weaponry, are the most dangerous guerrilla fighters humanity has ever produced. For Jin Moreau Broom, the war is the culmination of a lifetime of Cobra service. But it is also the height of danger for herself and her family as they struggle to survive a war that none of them ever expected to see. 

The Troft invasions of Qasama and the Cobra Worlds has had at least one result: it has turned long-time antagonists into uneasy and unwilling allies. As the aliens battle to consolidate their conquered territories, a small group of Cobras and Qasaman Djinn work together to create a victory that will rock the invaders to the core, a victory designed to bring other Troft demesnes into the conflict on the humans' side. Now one young Cobra must forge a new political order as a devastating alien enemy strikes — an enemy more deadly than any humanity has ever faced

My Thoughts: This is the third book in the Cobra War series. This book is listed as being the third book in a trilogy, but based upon the ending of the book, I have a feeling this series is going to continue. While the overall plot of the book wraps up, there are plenty of threads left dangling, leaving the story wide-open for continuation.

We finally see in this book some more of the humor that made many of Zahn’s Star Wars books so incredibly popular; not a lot, of course – this is military science fiction, after all – but there were definitely a few moments that reminded me that Zahn can be incredibly funny.

I have thoroughly enjoyed reading the Cobra books over this past week, and I definitely recommend them to anyone who enjoys military science fiction and/or Timothy Zahn’s writing. I will also be keeping a watchful eye for the expected continuation of this story. Be sure to check these books out.