Lots of Book News, Wharton adaptations, A Woman of No Importance wins Plutarch Award,Book Larder, Exit Strategy by Martha Wells, Defy or Defend by Gail Carriger, and A Cup of Normal by Devon Monk

I'm going to rely on Bookselling News for this blog post, along with three book reviews of shorter books. I've been having a rough time concentrating on my massive TBR, probably because of my fears/worries about the coronavirus and how it's likely to spread faster now that businesses are opening up again.  We've been told that a vaccine is only 6-8 months away, which is fast for vaccine production...however, that just means that I've got to dodge getting this deadly virus for the rest of the year, and hope that the doctors get better at treatments to keep immune compromised people alive until the vaccine debuts. Fingers crossed!

#ReadIndieForward Launches

Shelf Awareness and Sourcebooks have teamed up to launch #ReadIndieForward http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz44281773, a pay-it-forward campaign to support indie bookstores and share the joys of reading. Like a chain letter for books, #ReadIndieForward encourages readers to buy one book a week from indies for as many as eight to 10 weeks, send those books to family and friends, and ask recipients to pay it forward with their friends and families--and mention the gift and bookstore on social media. Readers can purchase books directly from their favorite independent bookstore, Indiebound.org or Bookshop.org, which has a special page for #ReadIndieForward.

Shelf Awareness publisher Jenn Risko said, "While indies experience what we know is one of their most challenging times ever, #ReadIndieForward is a great reminder to readers that the best way to help their local bookstore is to simply buy a book from them. As our industry continues to quarantine in place, we all know there's nothing like the excitement of getting a new book that takes us on a journey of the mind. Leave it to Dominique Raccah to come up with this simple yet powerful idea. We're grateful that she chose to partner with us on it."

Sourcebooks publisher and CEO Dominique Raccah said, "We have seen an amazing outpouring of generosity from authors and readers during the Covid-19 pandemic through initiatives like Save Indie Bookstores. #ReadIndieForward is another way for book lovers to share their love of reading and provide support to the independent bookstore community."

American Booksellers Association CEO Allison Hill said, "ABA is grateful to Sourcebooks and Shelf Awareness for creating an opportunity for book lovers to celebrate books, support independent bookstores, and connect with one another in a meaningful way during this crisis. #ReadIndieForward is exactly what we all need right now: Something to connect us, and something to look forward to."

Booksellers and publishers can join the campaign by visiting http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz44281773, which features downloadable social media assets that can be personalized with their logo, as well as ads to promote #ReadIndieForward to their communities, staff, authors and readers across Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

 I love this idea,and wish that a bookstore in or near Seattle would do it, too.

Cool Idea of the Day: Literati's Virtual Public Typewriter

Noting that one of the consequences of temporarily closing two months ago was the inability to get new notes on the shop's public typewriter, Literati Bookstore http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz44283653, Ann Arbor, Mich., wrote on Facebook: "Yet, now more than ever, I want to read the notes our customers often left behind: Notes of love, loss, introspection, hope, and, yes, the occasional fart joke. I feel like we all need an anonymous outlet during these unsettling times.

"When I lamented this to Oliver Uberti, co-editor of our book Notes from a Public Typewriter, he said, 'I have an idea.' He called up his brother Justin, a software engineer at Google, and a few weeks later, voila!--a virtual typewriter complete with clicks, clacks, and a carriage return! The world's smallest publishing house is once again accepting submissions. Head over to our homepage http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz44283653, and scroll down. We'd love if you left a note behind. And, as with life (and our analog machines), there is no delete key. Type strongly and don't look back."

Ooooh, I love Edith Wharton adaptations!

TV: The Custom of the Country

Sofia Coppola is teaming up with Apple to develop an adaptation of Edith Wharton's The Custom of the Country http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz44283670. Deadline reported that this is "the latest Apple TV+ project for The Virgin Suicides director, who has also directed feature film On the Rocks, starring Bill Murray and Rashida Jones, for the streamer."

The book is being adapted with an eye toward a limited series order, to be written and directed by Coppola. Deadline noted that in 2014, Sony Pictures Television "developed a project that would have starred Scarlett Johansson, who was set to exec produce as well."Coppola has said that Undine Spragg, the main character, "is my favorite literary anti-heroine and I'm excited to bring her to the screen for the first time."

 I want to read this book, which sounds like it deserves this award, if not a few others.

Awards: Plutarch Winner

A Woman of No Importance: The Untold Story of the American Spy Who Helped Win World War II by Sonia Purnell (Viking) has won the 2020 Plutarch Award for the Best Biography of 2019 http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz44313915. The award is sponsored by the Biographers International Organization.

Caroline Fraser, chair of the Plutarch Award Committee, commented: "The life of an obscure figure, Virginia Hall, rose to the top of the Plutarch list this year in Sonia Purnell's remarkable feat of research and storytelling. Combing Resistance files in Lyon and archives in London, Paris, and Washington, D.C., Purnell retraced Hall's well-concealed life, revealing the extreme perils and betrayals she faced, including the misogyny of handlers who nearly got her killed.

Vulnerable, reckless, and ruthless, Hall emerges as a character of great complexity: an American woman who survived behind enemy lines in Nazi-occupied France with a wooden leg and a questionable French accent, setting up spy networks for Churchill's government and refusing to evacuate as the Gestapo closed in. With the propulsive power of an espionage thriller, A Woman of No Importance sheds new light on the role of women in warfare."

 I have no idea where this bookstore is in Seattle, but I love this quote because it sounds very optimistic about "The new normal" of doing business in the age of the coronavirus plague.

Bookseller Moment: Book Larder 

http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz44315329"Morning in the shop http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz44315329." Book Larder http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz44315330 bookstore, Seattle, Wash., posted a Facebook video, noting: "This is what the current state of things looks like. Books stacked on tables for easy access. A dedicated area for packing and shipping boxes of cookbooks. Everything set up so anyone working has their own space. Soon I'll put the sandwich board sign in the open doorway and don my mask and gloves so you can pick up orders, me inside, you outside. With your help, we've made it work. We're planning what the next phase looks like, so we can welcome you safely, teach classes from afar, and continue to celebrate authors and their books. It sometimes feels like navigating with the stars instead of a map. But we'll get there. Thank you for joining us on this ever-changing journey!"

 This is a good summation of what I am experiencing now. There are days when I struggle to get out of bed, and sometimes succumb to over-sleeping.

From an article by Sarah Stiefvater in Publisher’s Weekly: Here’s how Susan Biali Haas, M.D., a physician who speaks and writes about stress management, burnout prevention and mental health, sees it. “There’s nothing wrong with being productive or creative,” she writes. “It can be a helpful, constructive way to cope. But we must also allow ourselves space to not be ‘amazing.’ Our world has not faced anything like this in over a century. It’s big. It’s OK, and even appropriate, to not be OK. Some people may feel like failures because they are not sufficiently ‘seizing the moment’ within this pandemic. Because they are struggling to cope. I have felt this way at times.”

Exit Strategy by Martha Wells is the 4th book in the Murderbot Diaries series. I love this series and have read books 1-3 with great zeal. I think I read book 4 previously, and just forgot about it, because much of this book was familiar to me. Here's the blurb: 

Murderbot wasn’t programmed to care. So, its decision to help the only human who ever showed it respect must be a system glitch, right?

Having traveled the width of the galaxy to unearth details of its own murderous transgressions, as well as those of the GrayCris Corporation, Murderbot is heading home to help Dr. Mensah—its former owner (protector? friend?)—submit evidence that could prevent GrayCris from destroying more colonists in its never-ending quest for profit.
But who’s going to believe a SecUnit gone rogue?
And what will become of it when it’s caught?

Well's prose is spic and span clean and brimming with dry humor and wit. The plots of her Murderbot books are straightforward and snappy, never lagging for a minute. I ama fan of Murderbot's elegant fighting ability and relentless goodness,and humanity, though this bot doesn't cotton to humanity as a role model at all. Sometimes it takes an outsiders perspective to see humanity's foible's clearly. That's why I'd give this book an A, and recommend it to anyone who likes military science fiction or robots and social science fiction.

Defy or Defend by Gail Carriger is another of her "Finishing School Girls" romantic/comedic fiction novels. I've read most of Carriger's books, and I adored them all. Here's the blurb: 

A vampire hive descending into madness. A beautiful spy with a sparkly plan. The bodyguard who must keep them from killing each other.
SPY
Dimity Plumleigh-Teignmott, code name Honey Bee, is the War Office's best and most decorative fixer. She's sweet and chipper, but oddly stealthy, and surprisingly effective given the right incentives.
VERSUS KNIGHT
Sir Crispin Bontwee was knighted for his military service, but instead of retiring, he secretly went to work for the War Office. Mostly he enjoys his job, except when he must safeguard the Honey Bee.
Neither one is a vampire expert, but when the Nottingham Hive goes badly Goth, only Dimity can stop their darkness from turning bloody. And only Crispin can stop an enthusiastic Dimity from death by vampire.
In a battle for survival (and wallpaper), Dimity must learn that not all that sparkles is good, while Cris discovers he likes honey a lot more than he thought.
Spinning off from the Finishing School series, featuring deadly ladies of quality, this story stands alone, but chronologically follows Poison or Protect before the start of the Parasol Protectorate Series. It's Cold Comfort Farm meets Queer Eye meets What We Do In The Shadows from the hilarious author of the Parasol Protectorate books.

---

I have no idea where this line came from or how to get rid of it, but the blurb has it right, there's a lot of fun and witty verbal jousting in this slender volume, and Dimity and Cris' love is just meant to be, full of delicious romps of all kinds. As in all of her novels, the prose is sparkling clean and wonderful fun, as are her plots which contain just enough twists and turns to keep the reader turning pages. A solid A, with the recommendation for anyone who loves British lit and witty, fun characters.

A Cup of Normal by Devon Monk is the first book of short stories of hers that I've read. Though it must be noted that I have read everything else that that author has written, mainly because her prose is pure gold, and her plots never drag or flag. Here's the blurb: These twenty-two short stories are measured out with a cup of normal and a pound of the fantastic.  From dark fairytales to alien skies, Monk's stories blend haunting yesterdays, forgotten  todays and twisted tomorrows wherein: ...A normal little girl in a city made of gears, takes on the world to save a toy.... ...A normal ancient monster living in Seattle, must decide if love is worth trusting a hero... ...A normal patchwork woman and her two-headed boyfriend stitch their life and farm together with needle, thread, and time... ...a normal vampire in a knitting shop must face sun-drenched secrets... ...a normal snow creature's wish changes a mad man's life... ...a normal man breaks reality with a hamster... ...and yes, a normal little robot, defines how extraordinary friendship can be. Poignant, bittersweet, frightening, and funny, these stories pour out worlds that are both lovely and odd, darkly strange and tantalizingly familiar, where no matter how fantastic the setting or situation, love, freedom, and hope find a way to take root and thrive.

What I love about short stories as expertly crafted as these (and the only author better at short story writing, in my estimation, would have to be the master himself, Ray Bradbury) is that you can laugh with one of the more amusing ones and cry with heartbreak at the next. Monk is a born storyteller, and as such she exudes the joy and purpose of words and language with every paragraph. This lovely, too short book of tales deserves nothing less than an A,and a recommendation for anyone who loves science fiction, fantasy and/or steampunk to give it a whirl. You won't be disappointed.

Two Quotes of the Day, Becoming Book Tour Documentary, Phinney Books, Harry Potter Reads Harry Potter, A Longer Fall by Charlaine Harris, Ash Princess by Laura Sebastian, and Hood: Season One by Lilith Saintcrow

It's May already, and I've been given a whole bunch of books for Mother's Day from my husband and son, so I'm excited to open the front door to see what the delivery people have left on my doorstep this week. Meanwhile, I've been reading and binge-watching streaming shows on Hulu, Amazon Prime and Netflix,and conference calling my doctors on Zoom so we can make health plans for the rest of the year. While here in Washington state we've managed to "flatten the curve" we are still not out of danger from the coronavirus contagion. So other than my monthly Remicade infusion, I am playing it safe and staying inside, which has become lonely but do-able, since my husband and son are here with me. I miss my friends and going to the library and bookstores, though.

This is a great quote and a very important reminder of how necessary book stores are to a community.

Quotation of the Day

Indie Bookstores' Many Roles

"Today's independent bookstores aren't just places of commerce. They're destinations unto themselves. They have also taken on many of the roles that used to be reserved for civic and religious institutions. Bookstores are community gathering places, hubs for conversation between like-minded souls, lecture halls hosting inspiring and thought-provoking speeches, and vital lyceums for citizens to discuss the important issues of the day."--Rachel Hirschhaut and Pauline Frommer, in the introduction to a Frommers.com story "25 Independent Bookstores We Love--and How to Support Them Now"

I have been watching this bit by bit, and so far it's fascinating.

Movies: Becoming Book Tour Doc

A first look trailer http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz44093205 has been released for Becoming http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz44093206, a new documentary about Michelle Obama's book tour to launch her 2018 memoir. Variety reported that the doc "offers a rare, up-close look at Michelle Obama's life, taking viewers behind-the-scenes as she embarks on a 34-city tour to promote her book. Both the memoir and the film are about highlighting the power of community to bridge divides and the spirit of connection that comes when people openly and honestly share their stories."

The film, which will be released on Netflix May 6, is from the Obamas' exclusive development pact with Netflix via their Higher Ground Productions banner, which they launched last year. It was directed by Nadia Hallgren (After Maria), with Katy Chevigny, Marilyn Ness and Lauren Cioffi producing.

Hallgren noted that she was approached by Higher Ground and was granted a 30-minute meeting with the former First Lady to decide whether she was the right fit to make Becoming: "She moves quickly and I had to learn to move with her--I filmed in tight, private spaces in a way that required the smallest possible footprint, but also allowed me to build a close relationship with her."

In a note, Michelle Obama wrote: "Those months I spent traveling--meeting and connecting with people in cities across the globe--drove home the idea that what we share in common is deep and real and can't be messed with. In groups large and small, young and old, unique and united, we came together and shared stories, filling those spaces with our joys, worries, and dreams. We processed the past and imagined a better future. In talking about the idea of 'becoming,' many of us dared to say our hopes out loud.

"I treasure the memories and that sense of connection now more than ever, as we struggle together to weather this pandemic, as we care for our loved ones, tend to our communities, and try to keep up with work and school while coping with huge amounts of loss, confusion, and uncertainty."

 

I remember when this bookstore opened in my old neighborhood up on the Ridge.  I hope that they manage to stay alive throughout the lockdown and into the virus-free future.

At Phinney Books http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz44121368 in Seattle, Wash., doors are closed to the public but staff members are coming in most days, largely alone, to deal with inventory, orders and receiving. Store owner Tom Nissley reported that his staff is faring about "as well as can be hoped." In part because the staff is small and most of his employees are part-time, he's been able to keep everyone on payroll. Cabin fever, however, is, unfortunately, "rampant."

To Nissley's surprise, his PPP application was approved just in time for his store to receive funds as part of the first batch. He gives  credit for that to his neighborhood bank, which was helpful and efficient. He added that despite having little difficulty with the application process, it was still frustrating. "The fact that we, largely by chance, received ours and so many of our fellow businesses have not shows that the program is not working as it should," Nissley explained.

On the subject of virtual events, Nissley said Phinney Books doesn't do many actual in-store events even in normal times, but he has partnered with Phinney's sister store Madison Books http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz44121369 to do some virtual storytimes and book clubs. With no end in sight to social distancing, however, Nissley and his team would like to plan and run more of them.

One silver lining, Nissley continued, was the quick improvement of some of the store's shipping and customer-billing processes in ways that will be helpful in the long term. And while he said it wasn't really a

surprise, given the community, Phinney Books has had "wonderful support from our neighborhood, both with direct orders through our store and through Bookshop, although we miss seeing them in person." And, while he and his staff have the place to themselves, they are taking the opportunity to do some thorough inventory work.

He and his team, Nissley added, are very glad that Bookshop launched in February and that they got on board quickly. The volume of sales the store has seen through its Bookshop page has been "pretty astounding," and it's made it possible for them to "imagine coming out of this in decent shape, whatever conditions we come out to."

There are some lovely things to come out of the coronavirus quarantine, such as this lovely reading of the first chapter of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by JK Rowling. Daniel Radcliffe was wonderful in the movies as Harry, and he does a great job here of reading the book that became a movie that started his acting career.

Harry Potter' Reads Harry Potter

Daniel Radcliffe reading the first chapter http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz44186311of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone/Sorcerer's Stone has launched Wizarding World's latest  Harry Potter at Home http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz44186312 lockdown initiative, in which "some of the best-loved faces http://www.shelf-awareness.com/ct/uz3642037Biz44186313 from global entertainment, music and sport have lent their voices to the story they love by recording videos of themselves reading the timeless first Harry Potter book." Fans can also listen to an audio version of "The Boy Who Lived" exclusively on Spotify.

Other readers will include Stephen Fry, David Beckham, Dakota Fanning, Claudia Kim, Noma Dumezweni and Eddie Redmayne, "with more surprises and special appearances from across the Wizarding World and beyond to come. Each will be reading different sections of this iconic book--with its themes of family, friendship, courage and overcoming adversity--to families around the world," Wizarding World noted.

 Another good quote about the importance of local independent bookstores.

Quotation of the Day

'An Effort to Keep Indies' Beating Hearts Alive and Well'

"In the wild, certain species, like starfish or wolves, have a disproportionately nourishing effect on the communities around them. Independent bookstores are a lot like that for us. They give us a place to sit, to wander our imaginations, to commune. They are the endpoint of a stroll. The beginning point of an evening. They pump ideas and inspiration and meaning and warmth back out into the streets around them. And they are sick right now. Covid-19 is threatening their livelihoods in dire ways. I'm setting myself a goal--a fun and easy goal. Every Sunday, I am buying a book from an indie. It's an indulgence, a treat to myself in these lonely and uncertain times, that also may do a shred of good. I hope you'll join me, in some way that is right for you, in this effort to keep these beating hearts alive and well."--Lulu Miller, author of Why Fish Don't Exist and co-founder of NPR's Invisibilia, on S&S.com

A Longer Fall by Charlaine Harris is the second book in her "Gunnie Rose" series, starring the toughest young female gun for hire ever to shoot a Colt or a Winchester. Here's the blurb: Charlaine Harris returns with the second of the Gunnie Rose series, in which Lizbeth is hired onto a new crew, transporting a crate into Dixie, the self-exiled southeast territory of the former United States. What the crate contains is something so powerful, that forces from across three territories want to possess it.

In this second thrilling installment of the Gunnie Rose series, Lizbeth Rose is hired onto a new crew for a seemingly easy protection job, transporting a crate into Dixie, just about the last part of the former United States of America she wants to visit. But what seemed like a straight-forward job turns into a massacre as the crate is stolen. Up against a wall in Dixie, where social norms have stepped back into the last century, Lizbeth has to go undercover with an old friend to retrieve the crate as what’s inside can spark a rebellion, if she can get it back in time.

#1 New York Times bestselling author Charlaine Harris (Sookie Stackhouse mysteries and Midnight, Texas trilogy) is at her best here, building the world of this alternate history of the United States, where magic is an acknowledged but despised power.

I enjoyed the first book in the series, and while it was bloodier than I would have liked, there were many things to like about the book that made me overlook the high bloody body count. In this installment of the series, Lizbeth is teamed up with her old flame, the Russian wizard Eli Z, who is obviously in love with Lizbeth, but due to commitments to his Tsar and family, can't have a committed relationship with her. They can and do sleep together, however, and pretend they are husband and wife while they try to unravel the mystery of what happened to a crate of saint's bones that Lizbeth and her crew were hired to protect and get to a buyer in Dixie.There's a lot of crazy Southerners and racial/class strife that mirrors some of the troubles in society today, but Harris makes sure that the morality play never overwhelms the plot of the main story. And, as usual, Harris' prose is sterling, and her characters sublime. I'd give this book a solid B+, and recommend it to anyone who read the first book. This is a fast read that will keep you up turning pages into the wee hours.

Ash Princess by Laura Sebastian is a YA fantasy that reminded me of Sarah Maas's Throne of Glass series and  SnowWhite/RoseRed re-booted fairy tales that are everywhere out there now. There's also Victoria Aveyard's Red Queen series and Fairest by Marissa Meyer that come to mind. Here's the blurb: The first book in the New York Times bestselling series "made for fans of Victoria Aveyard and Sabaa Tahir" (Bustle), Ash Princess is an epic new fantasy about a throne cruelly stolen and a girl who must fight to take it back for her people.

Theodosia was six when her country was invaded and her mother, the Fire Queen, was murdered before her eyes. On that day, the Kaiser took Theodosia's family, her land, and her name. Theo was crowned Ash Princess--a title of shame to bear in her new life as a prisoner.
For ten years Theo has been a captive in her own palace. She's endured the relentless abuse and ridicule of the Kaiser and his court. She is powerless, surviving in her new world only by burying the girl she was deep inside.

Then, one night, the Kaiser forces her to do the unthinkable. With blood on her hands and all hope of reclaiming her throne lost, she realizes that surviving is no longer enough. But she does have a weapon: her mind is sharper than any sword. And power isn't always won on the battlefield.
For ten years, the Ash Princess has seen her land pillaged and her people enslaved. That all ends here.
 

The abuse that Theo must bear is horrendous in this book, but it's nothing compared to how her people are starved, beaten, enslaved and murdered. When she finally gets up enough gumption to escape and try to help her people, things do not go according to plan, and she fumbles and ends up killing the wrong people while not ending the Kaiser, who has been taking over her country and torturing her people (and skeeving after her) for years. There's also the inevitable love triangle between the Kaiser's son Soren, who is in love with Theo, and Theo's childhood friend (and member of the resistence) Blaise, who is also in love with her, but because he spent too much time in the mines, he's now close to becoming a "berserker" who burns up with magic from the inside out. The first book ends with an escape, and while I'm looking forward to the next two books in the series, I sincerely hope that Theo grows up and gets herself together enough to take back her throne and free her people. The prose is clean and strong, while the plot is somewhat twisty and slows down a couple of times for no reason.I'd give this book a B, and  recommend it to fans of  Aveyard and Maas.

Hood: Season One by Lilith Saintcrow is a "Robin Hood" in space retelling of the classic fairy tale of the titled prince who ends up robbing from the rich to give to the poor. Unfortunately, in this reboot version of Robin Hood, Robbhan has been at war and has a severe case of not only PTSD, but of self-loathing that makes him want to get himself killed and also makes him an unhygenic asshat who doesn't want a relationship with the Maid Marion character, Marah, but does want to kill the Sheriff of Nottingham's thug and second in command, Giz, the "Guy of Guisborne" character. Giz is in love with Marah, of course, but in a really creepy survelance way, where he constantly manipulates her into dining with him so he can ingratiate himself into her life. She uses Giz to keep her smuggling operation going (she sells black market stuff to keep her medical clinic for the poor open and operational) but she does also seem to have some feelings for him, as well as feelings for Rob that he makes clear he doesn't share. I'm not really in love with this version of Nottingham, England, or the characters who populate it. It's all very grim and the only person who seems to want to do something to aleviate that suffering is Marah.  Here's the blurb:

The Great Migration was centuries ago; two generation ships reached the Anglene galaxy with its clutch of terraform-suitable planets and performed their work. Now Anglene is smoldering; the galactic insurrection is supposed to be crushed. Robbhan Locke, a Second Echelon soldier, has returned to his birth planet along with other veterans, finding Sharl Notheim holding all of Sagittarius in his mailed fist for Parl Jun the Regent. 
There’s no redemption in homecoming. Even Marah Madán and Ged Gizabón, Robb’s childhood friends, have been forced into accommodation. The Sharl won’t stop squeezing until he’s made maximum profit for his royal patron–and covered up all his wartime indiscretions.
Heroes aren’t needed here, but even a damaged man can fight…

Though Saintcrow's excellent prose is on display here, and the plot is faster than a speeding bullet or plasma arc, I found it to be too depressing and dark and militaristic for my tastes. It's a short novel, at 257 pages, but there's unrelenting negativity here that wears on the reader as surely as it has worn on Rob and Giz and Marah. I'd give the book a C, again because it's not really my cuppa and there's no one here to root for in this grim landscape, but for some Robin Hood fans who are into military fantasy and horror, this book might be just the ticket.