Psyschae Plays: Book Review: The Retrievers Series by Laura Anne Gilman

Staying Dead by Laura Anne Gilman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

LOVED this book. I really enjoy Wren's character and I like the dynamic between Wren and Sergei, even if their ending seemed a little forced and awkward. The storyline kept me questioning and I would like to see what other adventures they get themselves into. The writing style was easy to read and sucked me in. I didn't want to put it down.

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Curse the Dark by Laura Anne Gilman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I became hooked on this series by getting a free book through a book club. I am SO GLAD they did. I fell in love with Wren and Sergei in book one and this book did not fail to keep the love affair going strong. There were a few foreshadowing that actually threw me off the scent trail and I was shocked and surprised at the ending. I'll save the spoilers for last so you don't have to read them should you wish to be surprised. :)

The downside to this book was the fair amount of head-hopping that happened within the chapters. I'm not put off by the particular style, but it was different than I was used to. I didn't quite know whose head I was in all the time. Thankfully she was artful enough to keep me up to date on who was whom, but it was a little difficult in a couple of places to keep track. Otherwise this is Laura Anne Gilman's usual style and grace with the written word and I was glad to have picked it up, especially now that I have my Nook and it's available in e-format.

There cannot be a revolution without the loss of those you hold dear. I look forward to future books.

**SPOILERS LURK HERE**

As I tweeted so passionately in the heat of the moment, I was really angry that she killed off Lee. He barely had the chance to become a character before he was being removed. He was my favorite of the characters, as I'm sure you can tell, and he will be missed by the readers as well as the characters. It's not often, in politics, that someone becomes an active member without putting themselves at risk. Not to mention the possibilities for character development with the death of a friend. His death was not in vain, however. It was his blaze of glory because he totally kicked some butt. Way to go, Lee. You will be missed.

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Bring It On by Laura Anne Gilman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The overall plot arch is really beginning to thicken! Wren is in over her head with nowhere to go but with the current (pun-intentional) and do what it is she does best. I'm really curious to see where this series is going and what is going to put the kibosh on KimAnn. I'm not entirely sure what she's got up her sleeve, but it can't be anything good.

The retrieval in this book was almost too easy for Wren and she nearly failed, which is a first so far. I'm glad to see that she isn't perfect. Too much perfection and the character gets boring. There's no thrill to read. The retrievals are starting to take a back seat to the overall plot and while I was slightly disappointed in that, adding in anything more would have made the book too huge and too much to follow in one chunk. Gilman did an excellent job staying to task despite so much going on. Bravo!

My only complaints in this book was the snippets at the ends of the chapters leading into the next and the reptition. I think, from a perspective of flow, it would be better if the snippets were included in the next chapter and simply removed from the end of the previous. Minor complaint, I know. Since I've been reading the entire series back to back, the repetition is a little annoying, but it can't be helped. If I was coming in as they were being published, that reminder would be refreshing.

All in all, a good read. I'm looking forward to getting into the next book!

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