Review: Rex Riders by J.P. Carlson

Publisher: Monstrosities Books

Published: June 21, 2011

Pages: 440

Source: For Review from LibraryThing's Early Reviewers Program

Rating: 2.5 Stars

When 14-year-old Zeke Calhoun goes to live at his Uncle Jesse’s broken-down ranch in Texas, he discovers that he has a natural way with horses and loves to ride. But this is nothing compared to what he finds in a riverbed near the ranch: a mysterious stranger, riddled with bullets, lying face down in the dirt, and a juvenile T-Rex keeping a pack of hungry wolves at bay. Where did the stranger come from? Who shot him and why? While Zeke saves the stranger and sets out to answer these questions, he finds something much more interesting—a bridle in the dinosaur’s mouth. From that moment on he knows he is destined to ride the T-Rex. What he does not know, however, is that his actions will set off a chain of events plunging him into an incredible adventure, one that will lead to the discovery of a deadly alliance between Earth and a prehistoric world that could threaten the very fabric of both.

In short: Though it is by no means a triumph in writing, characterization, or editing, Rex Riders by J.P. Carlson is a great adventure for any major dinosaur geek.

I was so excited to receive Rex Riders through LibraryThing's Early Reviewers Program. As a paleo nerd, my reaction upon seeing the cover and reading the blurb for Rex Riders was pure, unadulterated joy. A story about a boy who gets to ride a tame, teenaged T-Rex, in the style of Dinotopia? Cool Factor 10! (Erm, or should this be Nerd Factor 10?). In Rex Riders, aliens transport dinosaurs from Cretaceous Era Earth to their own planet using a special-transport-device-thing. The dinosaurs thrive on their new planet and coevolve with other alien life forms. Later, they are brought back to Earth through the same special-transport-device-thing. Rex Riders definitely gets points for being the most original and strange book I've read this year.

The major problem with Rex Riders however, is that it is simply no great piece of literature, to put it lightly. The writing and characterization is amateurish, reverting to the easy way out of "telling instead of showing" the reader. At 440 pages, Rex Riders is also in dire need of some serious editing. At various points, there were large sections of extraneous and boring information that I felt the urge to just skim over to get to the actual action. This all being said, did I expect Rex Riders to be excellently written when I saw it? No. I wanted to read it purely because it had dinosaurs in it, I'm not going to lie.

And as a dinosaur fan, Rex Riders delivers on the Cool Factor scenes, featuring triceratops stampedes, baryonyx chases, and tyrannosaur hunts. J.P. Carlson excels in staging intense action scenes that were great fun to read. Anytime there was a dinosaur on the page, it thrilled me, even if they weren't doing anything particularly interesting. This story is for anyone who has ever dreamed of living in a time when dinosaurs were alive (with the added bonus that juvenile T-Rexes can be "domesticated" and ridden and are less likely to, you know, kill you). I know I've dreamt of it.

To put it bluntly, if you are not as much of a dinosaur geek as I am, I would skip this one.

Author Links:
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Waiting On Wednesday (12): Psychological Thrillers

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill of Breaking The Spine in which an upcoming, eagerly anticipated release is highlighted on the blog.

This week, I'm waiting on Psychological Thrillers:

Title: Frost
Author: Marianna Baer
Publisher: Balzer & Bray (HarperCollins)
Date: September 13, 2011

Leena Thomas’s senior year at boarding school begins with a shock: Frost House, her cozy dorm of close friends, has been assigned an unexpected roommate: confrontational, eccentric Celeste Lazar. But while Leena’s anxiety about a threat to her sanctuary proves valid, it becomes less and less clear whether the threat lies with her new roommate, within Leena’s own mind, or within the very nature of Frost House itself. Mysterious happenings in the dorm, an intense triangle between Leena, Celeste, and Celeste’s brother, and the reawakening of childhood fears, all push Leena to take increasingly desperate measures to feel safe. Frost is the story of a haunting. As to whether the demons are supernatural or psychological . . . well, which answer would let you sleep at night?

Title: As I Wake
Author: Elizabeth Scott
Publisher: Dutton (Penguin)
Date: September 15, 2011

Ava is welcomed home from the hospital by a doting mother, lively friends, and a crush finally beginning to show interest. There's only one problem: Ava can't remember any of them - and can't shake the eerie feeling that she's not who they say she is.
Ava struggles to break through her amnesiac haze as she goes through the motions of high-school life, but the memories that surface take place in a very different world, where Ava and familiar-faced friends are under constant scrutiny and no one can be trusted. Ava doesn't know what to make of these visions, or of the boy who is at the center of them all, until he reappears in her life and offers answers . . . but only in exchange for her trust.

Title: The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer
Author: Michelle Hodkin
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Date: September 27, 2011

Mara Dyer doesn't think life can get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there.

It can.

She believes there must be more to the accident she can't remember that killed her friends and left her mysteriously unharmed.

There is.

She doesn't believe that after everything she's been through, she can fall in love.

She's wrong.

Title: Glimmer
Author: Phoebe Kitandis
Publisher: Balzer & Bray (HarperCollins)
Date: April 17, 2012

When Marshall and Elyse wake up in each other’s arms with zero memory of how they got there or who they are, it’s the start of a long journey through their separate pasts and shared future. 
Terrified by their amnesia, the two make a pact to work together to find the answers that could jog their missing memories. As they piece together clues, they discover they’re in the idyllic mountain resort town of Summer Falls, where everyone seems mysteriously happy, but as Marshall and Elyse quickly learn, darkness lurks beneath the town’s perfect facade. Not only is the town haunted by sinister ghosts, but none of its living inhabitants retain bad memories of anything—not the death of Marshall’s mom, not the hidden shame in Elyse’s family, not even the day-to-day anguish of high school. 
Lonely in this world of happy zombies, Marsh and Elyse fall into an intense relationship...but the secrets they uncover could be the death of this growing love—and the death of everyone, and everything, they love in Summer Falls.


Is it just me, or does anyone else love being confused when reading? Not super confused mind you, but I love not knowing exactly what the heck is going on and I find that psychological thrillers, like the ones above, are perfect for that. I love stumbling through the story with a character who is also just as confused, trying to figure out the mystery, and the big reveal at the end. That is my idea of fun!

How about you? Are you waiting on any of these Psychological Thrillers? Are there any upcoming Psychological Thrillers that aren't included here that you feel I should know about?

Review: The Curse of the Wendigo (The Monstrumologist #2) by Rick Yancey

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Published: September 19, 2010

Pages: 448

Source: Won from YA Book Shelf (Thanks!)

Rating: 4.5 Stars

While attempting to disprove that Homo vampiris, the vampire, could exist, Dr. Warthrop is asked by his former fiancee to rescue her husband from the Wendigo, a creature that starves even as it gorges itself on human flesh, which has snatched him in the Canadian wilderness. Although Warthrop also considers the Wendigo to be fictitious, he relents and rescues her husband from death and starvation, and then sees the man transform into a Wendigo. Can the doctor and Will Henry hunt down the ultimate predator, who, like the legendary vampire, is neither living nor dead, whose hunger for human flesh is never satisfied? This second book in The Monstrumologist series explores the line between myth and reality, love and hate, genius and madness.

In short: The Curse of the Wendigo by Rick Yancey does not hold back the horror and gore in this superb and gag-inducing sequel in the terrifying series.

So begins a new adventure with Will Henry, assistant monstrumologist, and his master and certified monstrumologist, Dr. Warthrop. Last time, in The Monstrumologist, the monster of the story was a well studied and known humanoid beast. This time, in The Curse of the Wendigo, the monster is the Wendigo, a vampire-like beast that is just a silly myth, not worthy of actual study because it doesn't exist, so says the doctor. Vampires aren't real and to believe they exist would be making a mockery of the monstrumologist profession. Or so the doctor thinks.

Though the Wendigo isn't exactly like a vampire as we know it, it is a similar monster. Though I have been impressed in the past by authors of the myriad vampire novels out there and their ability to create distinct vampire lore to distinguish themselves, now after having read The Curse of the Wendigo, they pale in originality. Rick Yancey has written the most creative vampire-esque novel I've ever read with The Curse of the Wendigo. 

Also, if possible, Yancey has created a monster even more terrifying than the one he wrote in The Monstrumologist! Imagine a beast that pulls out his prey's eyeballs and feasts on its heart. One with a perverse sense of humour that rips off one prey's face and places it over top of another, and scoops out the bowels of another to write messages on the wall. I really love that Rick Yancey just goes for it, you know? He really doesn't hold back and present a watered down monster for fear of turning away readers. He brings on the gore, blood, and feces in gag-inducing amounts. I can appreciate that. Even if lots of the scenes made me want to throw up my lunch.

I'm not sure I would like this particular brand of horror if it were set in a modern setting. But the gothic Victorian backdrop makes a perfect and creepy setting for a plot that is so horrific. And the setting is so perfectly described too. The Monstrumologist takes place entirely in New England but in The Curse of the Wendigo, we get to see two more 19th century locations: the untamed and desolate wilderness of Canada, and New York City as it was at the end of the 1800s. I'm not a huge historical fiction fan, but did I ever find these settings fascinating to read! Isn't learning about history fun when you're learning it by way of a well written fiction novel?

The same things I loved about The Monstrumologist, the well developed characters and the exquisite writing, are also present in The Curse of the Wendigo. However, I didn't like The Curse of the Wendigo quite as much as its predecessor because of some pacing problems. Other than that, it is a strong and compelling addition to a terrifying and brilliant series. Not sure if this series is for you? I'd recommend trying out the first book The Monstrumologist. Don't worry, it can be read as a standalone as each book chronicles a different set of adventures for Will Henry.

The third and final book in the series, The Isle of Blood, is set to be released September 13, 2011.

Previously, my Review of The Monstrumologist.

Other Reviews:
A Myriad of Books
Good Books and Good Wine

Author Links:
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*Read as part of the YA Series Challenge

In My Mailbox (10)

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi of The Story Siren (and inspired by Alea of Pop Culture Junkie) to showcase any books that I have received for review, bought, borrowed, or won to read.

For Review

Dark Inside by Jeyn Roberts (Thanks to Simon and Schuster Canada!)

Rex Riders by J.P. Carlson (Thanks to LibraryThing's Early Reviewers Program!)

Super excited to read both of these! Dark Inside sounds like an amazing post-apocalyptic read. From its description, it sounds like it has four main characters that share the spotlight, which is interesting in itself. Being a paleo nerd, I'm super geeked about Rex Riders. My reaction when I saw the cover on LibraryThing was pure, unadulterated, excited nerdiness.

Won/Freebies

Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier (Won from Once Upon A Quote)

Waterfall by Lisa T. Bergren (Free ebook)

I've heard amazing things about both of these time-travelling themed books. I would probably still have wanted to read them anyway even if it weren't for the positive buzz because I love time travel! Perhaps I'll read them one after another to compare them. Thanks to Elodie for hosting the Ruby Red giveaway and Small Review for letting me know about the free Waterfall ebook!

Review: Go The F--k To Sleep by Adam Mansbach

Publisher: Akashic Books

Published: June 13, 2011

Pages: 32

Source: Free Audiobook from Audible.com

Rating: 4 Stars - I Loved It!

Go the F--k to Sleep is a bedtime book for parents who live in the real world, where a few snoozing kitties and cutesy rhymes don't always send a toddler sailing blissfully off to dreamland. Profane, affectionate, and radically honest, California Book Award-winning author Adam Mansbach's verses perfectly capture the familiar—and unspoken—tribulations of putting your little angel down for the night. In the process, they open up a conversation about parenting, granting us permission to admit our frustrations, and laugh at their absurdity.

Brilliant. I took note of this satirical children's book immediately upon reading its colourful title, though I was not sure what to make of it until I read a bit about it. Go The F--k To Sleep is meant as a commentary on the sometimes silly bedtime stories parents read to their children to get them to go to sleep. Though I am not a parent myself and could not directly relate to the situation that Adam Mansbach presents, I do have a feel for the frustrations that parenthood can sometimes bring. Adam Mansbach has written a hilarious parody of a children's book that should definitely never be read to an actual child.

I listened to the free audiobook at Audible.com. In another stroke of brilliance, they hired Samuel L. Jackson to narrate it. Perfect choice for the narrator of a book that has an F-bomb in its title or what? In searching the YouTubes, I actually found a video with pictures from the book and read by Samuel L. Jackson. Enjoy!