Angry Lead Skies

Rating:
Summary: Not All the Lights in the Skies are Stars
Review: Set in TunFaire, a city that was corrupt before dinosaurs ever learned to count, P.I. Garrett's adventures among the magical, the crooked, and the nasty (often at the same time) have been entertaining readers since 1997. TunFaire is the gem of the Karentine, a city where magic is generally bad news, racial violence between species is a commonplace, and you can find or buy anything if you have the wherewithal to acquire it. There Garrett has set up shop with his partner, the Dead Man - who is a Loghyr (think 500 pound telepathic elephant) who has been dead for 400 years and alternates between messing with Garrett's mind and taking naps.

Garrett does not lack for friends, if friends are what you would call them. There's Morley the full time restaurateur and part time crook, Saucerhead Tharpe, Dojango, Martha and Doris (the last three are all guys... guy grolls, that is). Then there in Playmate, a ministerial blacksmith who gets people like Garrett involved in plots like the one in 'Angry Lead Skies.' Ostensibly, Playmate wants Garrett to keep an eye on young Kip Prose, who has suddenly developed the ability to invent things. Things like tricycles, lead pencils, and weird gadgets with gears. It seems like Kip has befriended some strange silver elves and, suddenly, his head is full of ideas.

It doesn't take Garret too long to find out that the strange silver elves and the saucers and lights whizzing around the TunFaire skies are somehow related. And that too many people are interested in Kip's sudden rush of inventiveness. Soon Gerrett is neck deep in a chase that seems guaranteed to get him knocked out every four hours. Soon, the attention of TunFaire's regular cast of politicians and wizards turns to Garret's antics, and to the ever-increasing numbers of a new kind of elf that shoots back with a vengeance. The P.I. finds that there is always somebody spying on him, visible, invisible, parrot or pixie.

The good side of the case is that Garrett finds himself surrounded by the kind of women he likes best. Possessive and adorable. There are his regular ladies, Tinny, Alyx, and Katie. Then his new partner is the rat woman Singe, who can out track everyone else, and think circles around most of what TunFaire considers human. Rat people are on the bottom of the social scale in TunFaire, but Singe is well on her way to prove that there is much more to the story of the Rat people than most are willing to admit.

And so, once again, Glen Cook has managed to write a science fiction story from the viewpoint of those that live in a fantasy world, begging the question of what is magic, and what is not. He takes this heady concoction and turns it into the kind of tough guy mystery tale which would appeal in whatever setting it found itself. With titles that mimic John D. MacDonald. All of Cook's stories in this series combine a sarcastic sense of humor with a slightly bent set of morals (on everyone's part). But, mixed in are reflections of current events in our own world. Garrett's occasional reminiscences of the Tarantine war carry echoes of Cook's Black Company books, and of the Viet Nam conflict that lies behind both of the fantasy conflicts. This ability to write in layers is what makes Glen Cook a remarkable author who never fails to give a reader pleasure.

Rating:
Summary: Who done it? Who wrote it?
Review: This does not read like the previous books in this series. I have been checking Amazon constantly for a new book and pre-ordered this as soon as it was available. If you are a big fan of the series, you will likely be disappointed. I would guess that Cook did not write this book. Too many contradictions (mentioned by other reviewers, whose comments I agree with). But, if you really are a fan, you are going to buy this book anyway, just don't get your hopes up. The interaction between the characters feels strained and not natural. I wanted to wait until the end, thinking it would get better, but it didn't. Cook has done a great job with the series until now. I eagerly await the next book, with the hopes that it gets better. Worse than anything, there was not enough of Morley Dotes, my favorite character in the series. I think there must have been a book before this one and somehow Angry Lead Skies was accidently published before it (sarcasm). I never thought I would say this but, there is too much sex in the book, not that that is a problem, but it just doesn't fit. It's as if it were thrown in because there was nothing else, so why not go with something that sells. Singe wants a turn with Garrett? Perhaps it has been too long between books? I look forward to the next one, if there will be a next one. Hopefully Cook will read the series for a refresher, (if he wrote this one). I can't say don't buy it, because I want to see another one, but if you are new to the series, pick up the earlier books (which I have read several times each).

I expected more....and I hate to think that Cook does not have it anymore.

Peace,

MD

Rating:
Summary: Uninspired story that never seemed to end
Review: This is the first Glen Cook novel that I have not thoroughly enjoyed. Usually I read the Garrett novels in one sitting and when I get to the end of the story I am so sad that it is over that I have to read it again. ... I read all the novels chronologically several times a year (and have been doing so since I first picked up a Garret Novel in 1994).

This book was a huge disappointment. I do not like stories that mix Science Fiction and Fantasy. (I like my Sci-Fi science-y and my Fantasy magical), and was surprised that Glen Cook added the Sci-Fi element to this series. There was too much gratuitous sex in the novel. (all written with good taste, but still - it was off-putting). I also didn't like the little inconsistencies that were brought up in this story (Doris and Marsha speaking in complete, grammatically correct sentences!! etc.).

Overall this book does not live up to its predecessors.

Rating:
Summary: Angry Lead Reader
Review: With out even reading the back cover the minute I saw the New Garrett Mystery I bought it. I am sorry I did. If my dog had not grabbed it I would have returned it. If you have read the other books in Glen Cooks Garrett series how can you help but be upset by this pale immitation. Gone is the marvolous pacing and quick wit. It has been replaced with bad jokes and worse style. It is ham handed and lacks the subtle sense of irony and twisted sense of humor that I have come to enjoy in a Garrett Mystery. Before I buy the next book in this series I intend to check it out of the library and see if I wish to waste my money on him again.

Rating:
Summary: ?????
Review: You'll have to forgive me, but I think part of my reaction is my own problem.

I picked up this book based on the advertising jacket and the associated reviewers' praise associated to the book. What primarily drew my interest was the author's comparisons to Raymond Chandler ... and I have to wonder, "Did the reviewer EVER READ any Chandler?"

In my humble opinion, the book is awful ... so awful that it's been added to the small list of books that I didn't have the stomach to finish. The plot is incomprehensible, as well as the characters as their relationship to the principle private / not-so-private / not-really-a-private detective. After giving it 100 pages to actually develop into something more than a carbon copy ... of any good 1940's noir film set in an, albeit, warped perspective, I tossed it aside and unloaded it at the local secondhand bookstore.

Now, this is NOT to say that the book wouldn't be enjoyed by others. I'm an adult reader, and, if you've read any of my other reviews, you'll find that I've read a variety of types of books, listen to a variety of types of music, etc., etc., etc. I believe myself to be a rather eclectic participant with the arts, but the prose just kept slowing down the narrative of the story. The half-jokes and 'you had to be there' moments halted the story from making any real progress, in my estimation ... and, thus, I decided not to waste any more time with it. As I always say, "Life is too short to be lost to what you consider a bad read."

However, I do recommend followers of the author's previous work to pick it up. They'll probably be able to give a more informed response.