Review: All Men of Genius

All Men of Genius

Author: Lev A.C. Rosen
Pages: 464
Publisher: Tor Books
Source: Publisher for review

Description from Goodreads:
Inspired by two of the most beloved works by literary masters, "All Men of Genius "takes place in an alternate Steampunk Victorian London, where science makes the impossible possible.

Violet Adams wants to attend Illyria College, a widely renowned school for the most brilliant up-and-coming scientific minds, founded by the late Duke Illyria, the greatest scientist of the Victorian Age. The school is run by his son, Ernest, who has held to his father's policy that the small, exclusive college remain male-only. Violet sees her opportunity when her father departs for America. She disguises herself as her twin brother, Ashton, and gains entry.

But keeping the secret of her sex won't be easy, not with her friend Jack's constant habit of pulling pranks, and especially not when the duke's young ward, Cecily, starts to develop feelings for Violet's alter ego, "Ashton." Not to mention blackmail, mysterious killer automata, and the way Violet's pulse quickens whenever the young duke, Ernest (who has a secret past of his own), speaks to her. She soon realizes that it's not just keeping her secret until the end of the year faire she has to worry about: it's surviving that long.

First Sentence: "The two men sat silently in the carriage."

Review:

How did this book not end up on my radar until now? Seriously, how did I miss this? A book inspired by two of my favorite works of literature, Twelfth Night, my very favorite Shakespeare play, and The Importance of Being Earnest? On top of that, add some steampunky goodness, and you have a book that was obviously just made for me.

Now, when I say inspired by those plays, I don't mean that All Men of Genius is a retelling. It's not. For the most part, Rosen uses those two plays for character names, some assistance with characterization, and the basic shenanigans of a crossdressing plot. There's a stronger correlation to Twelfth Night, obviously, but Rosen has very much created his own story and characters. If you are as much of a fan of these two works as I happen to be, you will probably giggle with delight at the way he weaves quotes and references to them together in brilliant ways. If you haven't read them, I see no reason why All Men of Genius cannot be greatly appreciated on its own merits; there should be no confusion for not having read his inspiration materials, though I do greatly recommend that you do so for your own well-being.

Rosen has created a rather large cast of characters, and done so quite deftly. In some novels, an author attempts to trace a number of story lines and characters, with the end result that all of the characters feel rather flat. Rosen, on the other hand, has created a loveable group of genius misfits, giving depth even to those with smaller parts, like Mrs. Wilks, Violet and Ashton's housekeeper. I really appreciate authors that take the time to care even about more minor characters. There are a few instances where he would have been better off leaving some of the detail out, as with a few of the professors, since we track them for such a brief time and don't accomplish much of anything, but, for the most part, I approve wholeheartedly of how he constructed this.

A handful of the characters are directly comparable to their counterparts in either Twelfth Night or The Importance of Being Earnest, while others come largely from Rosen's own brain or have been tweaked ever so delightfully. Cecily Worthington, for example, has the same sweet, naive spirit of the character of the same name in Wilde's play, as evidenced in her poor choice in a crush and her toy rabbit Shakespeare, which she still takes everywhere with her at sixteen. In All Men of Genius, she also happens to be a genius, rather than a bit of a ditz. Others who hearken strongly to their inspirations are Toby Belch, Miriam (Maria of Twelfth Night), and Malcolm Volio, although in most every case, perhaps with the exception of Volio, they have additional complexities.

As with Cecily, Violet has much more intelligence than Viola, her counterpart in Twelfth Night. While she goes through the same ordeals, she has a much more powerful idea of what women are capable of, while also figuring out that she does want to be a woman, rather than wishing to have been born a man. Her transition throughout the novel had a lot of power to it, allowing her to truly feel that women really are just as powerful as men. Rosen did a good job navigating the dangerous waters of the gender divide. In some cases, as with Ernest Worthington and Jack Feste, Rosen has borrowed the name, but largely built the character from scratch. Whether the characters really served as references or not, I found that I greatly delighted in nearly every single one of them.

Obviously, All Men of Genius is rather lengthy. Much as I enjoyed it, plowing through it did take some time. There's quite a lot of discussion of the various sciences, but kept at a reasonable level that even I, who have always been atrocious at science, could understand. For those who delight in steampunk, Rosen has created a swath of wonderful inventions. Personally, I would love to get my hands on Toby's hangover cure.

My favorite aspects of the novel have to be some of the clever references that Rosen threw into the book. For example, in All Men of Genius, a big change from Twelfth Night is that Violet's brother is gay, whereas in Shakespeare's play he gets to hook up with the woman who falls for his sister disguised as a man. In Rosen's novel, Ashton falls instead for Antony, which every reader of Twelfth Night can probably admit would have been the ending were Shakespeare honest. Rosen also does something quite clever and hilarious with Bunburry. Seriously, if you love those plays, you MUST read this.

As I conclude my review, I've just checked Goodreads to see if Rosen had any more books for me, and found that he doesn't have any other books out yet. He should get on that, because I want more. Witty literary references, well-drawn characters, and good writing to boot? This is my kind of author.

Rating: 4/5

Favorite Quote: "'Ah, but those genius women, they are the most difficult of all womankind.'"

Wild Wild West - Will Smith

Dead Reckoning

Author: Mercedes Lackey & Rosemary Edghill
Pages: 324
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Source: Bloomsbury via NetGalley

Description from Goodreads:
Jett is a girl disguised as a boy, living as a gambler in the old West as she searches for her long-lost brother. Honoria Gibbons is a smart, self-sufficient young woman who also happens to be a fabulous inventor. Both young women travel the prairie alone – until they are brought together by a zombie invasion! As Jett and Honoria investigate, they soon learn that these zombies aren’t rising from the dead of their own accord … but who would want an undead army? And why? This gunslinging, hair-raising, zombie western mashup is perfect for fans of Cowboys vs. Aliens and Pride & Prejudice & Zombies..

First Sentence: "Jett Gallatin expected trouble in Alsop, Texas—but not zombies"

Review:
If Cherie Priest's Boneshaker and Wild, Wild West had a lovechild, it would be Dead Reckoning. The book is filled with zombie mayhem from beginning to end in a wild west, steampunk setting. Add in a girl dressed as a boy, some crazy scientists, and religious cult, and you've got the makings for one action-packed ride.

The zombies are pretty creepy, although the addition of the cult is what REALLY makes the whole thing terrifying. Again, the zombies aren't the focal point. They are a bit distinct from the zombies I've encountered in other novels. These are a bit shambly and slow, but they are crazy strong, and almost impossible to dispatch. These zombies, like the origin of the world 'zombie,' are based on voodoo legend. One thing I'm bothered by is the use of the word zombie. It seems that its usage did originate in roughly that time period, but it still felt weird to hear people talking about the Confederacy and zombies in one breath.

The creepy factor they definitely got down, as well as the western bits and the steampunkery with the vehicle and the science. I would have liked to see a bit more humor in it, though. Nothing in the book really made me laugh, and this is a premise that would definitely have been improved with humor. I mean, any gender bender ought to have some amount of humor, because there are so many confusions that can happen.

I read this book in just a couple of hours, one sitting. It's a really fun read, but there wasn't too much more to it for me. Character development is seriously lacking. Both Jett and Gibbons are seriously hardcore women, and, of course, I liked that. However, they were still lacking in any real depth. And they were the best-developed characters. White Fox completely lacks personality. Seriously. He was like so boring. I was also a little confused about why his character was a white man raised by an Indian tribe, rather than just being native. There could have been diversity here, but there isn't.

The other thing about this, which makes me suspect they may be planning to make this a series, is that there are a lot of dropped plot threads. Jett never finds her brother. Despite some comments about how attractive the characters are and some foreshadowing of romance, nothing ever comes close to happening in that department. It just didn't really feel finished to me.

Still, if you want a mindless (zombie pun) read with lots of zombie action that you can dispatch quickly, Dead Reckoning will definitely fulfill your needs. I don't recommend this to anyone looking for a dark, witty, impressively-written novel; this is for fun only.

Rating: 2.5/5

Favorite Quote: "Gibbons stifled a tiny sigh of exasperation at hearing the familiar sentiment. In her experience, there was no obstacle that did not fall before the power of the mind. Far be it from her to point out yet again that the majority of the lady pioneers here in the West spent the greater part of their lives either alone while their husbands were out hunting or trapping or tilling the soil—or performing those tasks themselves when one of the perils White Fox had listed carried the husbands off. Both men and women had lecture Gibbons on the unsuitability of her chosen vocation, and when she marshaled her arguments, said, ‘But that’s different!’ (How it was different, no one was ever quite able to explain to her satisfaction.)"

"Wild Wild West, Jim West, desperado, rough rider
No you don't want nada
None of this, gun in this, brotha runnin this,
Buffalo soldier, look it's like I told ya"

Free - Switchfoot

Fruits Basket

Author: Natsuki Takaya
Volumes: 23
Publisher: Tokyopop

Description from Goodreads:
Tohru Honda was an orphan, living with her grandfather, when one day fate kicked her out of the house and she was forced to take up residence in a tent in the forest. Little did she know that the land she was staying on belonged to the Sohma family, a mysterious clan. After stumbling upon the teenage squatter, the Sohmas invite Tohru to stay in their house in exchange for housework. Everything's going well until she discovers the Sohma family's greatest secret: when hugged by members of the opposite sex, they each turn into their Chinese Zodiac animal!

Review:
Fruits Basket is probably my very favorite manga that I have read to date. Now, I wholeheartedly admit that the premise is weird and unlikely, but, hey, it's fantasy. Anyway, if you can get past the initial outlandishness, you discover a story full of heart and darkness. This is my fourth or fifth time through the series, and I just love it more every time.

Having read through a few reviews on Goodreads, I know that this series, and the character of Tohru especially, gets a lot of flak for being too cutesy. It seems that some people did not buy Tohru's consistently positive attitude or her naivete. For me, it worked. Tohru has her painful past, and she does occasionally struggle to put forward that happy face. In fact, I think that she's an incredibly strong character, because she tries so hard and does her best to be happy no matter what life throws her way.

Also criticized is the zodiac curse. Yes, it's crazy and not likely. Who cares? The least popular aspect seems to be the fact that one of the side effects of the curse is that hugging a member of the opposite sex will turn them into their animal. It sounds so arbitrary and like it was solely introduced for hijinks and humor. Actually, I think that there's more to it. This part of the curse is what really separates the Sohma's from other people. They are drawn more into the family and unable to mingle in society for fear of discovery. Their curse is being stuck together.

What really makes me love this story so much though is the way that it grows and changes. In most series, there isn't too much of a marking of time, but in Fruits Basket, the characters change a lot in both personality and appearance. I love that you can literally see the characters growing up from children to adults. Additionally, I really appreciate the level of depth in pretty much all of the rather extensive set of main characters. Each one gets at least one chapter focusing on their own issues.

If you don't believe me about the depth of the story, here's a quote, which pretty much perfectly sums up being young: "It's good to be young, without experience in how to live, struggling desperately as if you were going to drown, even though you could float if you just drew on your own strength." I just love that. Above and beyond the fantasy plot, this is really just a touching story of a lot of broken people coming together and trying to find the courage to believe in themselves and to really love.

Not only that, but the art is gorgeous. It takes a couple of volumes for Takaya to get into the swing of things, but after that I occasionally find myself pausing and just staring at a particular frame to admire the beauty therein. Of course, manga art gets criticized a lot for being ridiculous, so if you don't like it, then you won't like the art here either, since it's got the standards (like big eyes versus narrow ones to indicate degrees of masculinity/femininity).

Do not be fooled by the pretty shoujo artwork and cutesy opening chapters, though. Fruits Basket is very dark and tackled a lot of painful issues, such as parental abuse. However, it does so with heart and hope. This will always be one of my very favorite works of literature.

Rating: 5/5

"I've got my back against the wall
But I still hear the blue sky call
The chains that hold me back inside
Are the prisons of my mind

Free, come set me free
Down on my knees
I still believe
You can save me from me

Come set me free
Come set me free
Inside this shell
There's a prison cell

I try to live the light of day
Why would I do what I hate?
But when try to reach above
I only I hurt the ones I love"

Macho Man - Village People

Cheeky Angel

Author: Hiroyuki Nishimori
Volumes: 20
Publisher: VIZ Media

Brief Summary:
Due to some sort of magic spell, Megumi, who planned to be the manliest man of all manly men, was turned into a girl at the age of 9. Only her best friend Miki remembers that she used to be a boy; even photos from childhood show Megumi as a girl. He refuses to give up hope that he will never be changed back, though. Unfortunately for Megumi, he's gorgeous and attracts quite a following of men, including one particularly determined suitor, Genzou, a violent youth.

Review:
Hijinks! So many hijinks. I love gender benders. They're so humorous, because the characters do such absurd things. They also tend to be more friendly to all kinds of sexuality.

At the beginning, I really liked this. Meg so desperately wants to be a boy again, but she's a gorgeous girl, and ends up getting this group of guys that follow her around and want to date her. Her friend, Miki, tries to talk her into accepting one of the boys and life as a girl. The first volumes are about Meg's attempts to become a boy again, by finding the magic book that changed her. Later, I felt like the story sort of lost its direction, focusing instead on the evil plan of a guy who wanted to make them suffer; this part has many battles and was generally much less interesting than the rest.

Of course, the boys know that she used to be a guy and wants to be one again, and not just a man, but the manliest man. Even so, they commit themselves to help her find her way back to boyhood. They are somewhat torn, but, ultimately, they really just want to make her happy any way they can. The only reason I like Genzo as a character is that I feel he would still like her, even if she did change back to a man.

Meg is fantastic, because she is so powerful. She may be slender and light, but she makes up for it with speed and skill. There are few people in this violent story that can defeat Meg. Of course, the story is completely over the top. People take damage and keep fighting, when no ordinary person could withstand it. Meg can jump down like four stories and land like a cat. Not buying it.

Basically, this was a fun, silly, action-filled manga that confronts the issues of gender and strength.

Rating: 3/5

"Macho, macho man
I've got to be, a macho man"

Robin and Marion - Nickel Creek

Scarlet

Author: A. C. Gaughen
Pages: 287
ARC Acquired from: Walker Books via NetGalley

Brief Summary:
Will Scarlet, called Scar by friends, has a lot of secrets, first of which is that Will is actually a girl. The only people what know the truth about her are those in Rob's (Robin Hood's) gang. The Sheriff of Nottingham is sucking the people dry in his effort to have all of the money, so Rob, John, Scar and Much steal money back from him to help the people. Unfortunately, the Sheriff has had about enough of that, so he's hired a thief catcher, Guy of Gisbourne, with whom Scar has had a run-in in the past.

Review:
Scarlet is one of the books I have been completely desperate to read, since the moment I heard it was being published. A reenvisioning of a legend! A strong heroine! How could this fail? Well, in the past, a lot of the books I most wanted to read turned out to be really disappointing and awful. As a result, I held myself back, prepared myself to be disappointed.

Guess what? Scarlet totally was not disappointing. At all. I maintained my skepticism for a while, but Scarlet completely won me over. I had a lingering concern through most of the book, namely what exactly Gaughen was going to do with Maid Marian's character. Thankfully, what she did with the character was awesome.

What a fantastic way to retell the story of Robin Hood. Making one of the characters a girl changes so many dynamics, improves them in my opinion. Even better, Gaughen was able to make all of these changes without greatly altering the legend itself; it still fits within the parameters set by the accepted tale. That is seriously impressive. If I could, I would give Gaughen a high five.

Warming up to Scarlet took me some time too. At first, her dialect of English irritated me and she just was not that likable with her secrets and prickly-ness. As the book went on, I found myself loving the character more and more. The more I knew about her, the more I liked her, because Gaughen did such a fantastic job explaining why she were this way. Besides, in what world would I not respect a girl who's so strong and able to protect herself? In a time when women were not allowed rights or independence, she seized them in the only way she knew how.

The romance in Scarlet is amazing too, because Gaughen really made me wonder which guy would be better for Scar. Just like Scar wonders, although she also wonders if she wants a guy. Love triangles only work if the winner of the battle is not apparent. The romantic parts were really well-written, creating a sense of longing and a lack of confidence about the correct choice. They also weren't sappy, which is fantastic.

Most exciting is the fact that the door is wide open for a sequel. So far as I know there isn't one in the works, but one probably is. Just in case it isn't, I want to put my voice out here in the internet saying "Please write one, A. C. Gaughen! Please!"

Rating: 4.5/5

I'm Sticking with You - The Decemberists

Goliath
Leviathan, Book 3

Author: Scott Westerfeld
Illustrator: Keith Thompson
Pages: 537
Publisher: Simon Pulse

Despite having been somewhat disappointed with the Uglies series, mostly because I didn't care for the characters much, I have pretty much adored this series. In fact, I like them so much I've gotten both of my parents reading these books after me. Haha. Their complaint is that they get really tired of Westerfeld's invented slang, like 'bum-rag' and 'barking spiders,' the latter of which seems to particularly irritate. Personally, I find these things more amusing than annoying, but to each her own.

Anyway, Goliath is a good conclusion to the series, although the ending is a bit abrupt. Of course, to make the alternate version align with what happened in real life, he was somewhat constrained in what the ending of the tale could be. Westerfeld chooses to end, and I really don't see this as a spoiler, with the entry of the US into the conflict. Even though that is not, as I hope everyone well knows, the end of the war, but it works because it puts a nice cap to the tale of our heroes.

Reasons to love The Leviathan Trilogy:

• Steampunkery!
• Fabricated creatures and crazy metal contraptions...they may not always make sense, but they're just so cool.
• Awesome art work, if you read the print version.
• Prefer audiobooks? That's almost better, because those are narrated by the incomparable Alan Cumming.
• You can learn a new vocabulary of swear words.
• The lorises, which are just the most awesome little creatures.
• A kickass female heroine, who's much stronger than the boy she loves.
• Crossdressing!
• A prince in disguise!
• Nikola Tesla as a mad scientist, in fact the villain (of sorts) for book three.

Are these books perfect? No. However, they are still incredibly awesome and full of nerdy, action-adventure fun. Basically, if you ever got a kick out of history or fantasy, you should do yourself a favor and read these, starting with Leviathan.

Rating: 4/5

"We could go into the stratosphere
Soldiers fighting in the Cong
But with you by my side I can do anything
When we swing we hang past right and wrong

I'll do anything for you
Anything you want me to
I'll do anything for you
Oh, I'm sticking with you"