The Coyote Kings of the Space-Age Bachelor Pad

Rating:
Summary: just finished the book ...
Review: ... and enjoyed the read. I think I'm going to miss these guys (Hamza and Yehat).

"The door bangs open and Ye springs out like a Pop-Tart. `Rock and roll, baby!'

"There's only one Ye."

The average adult laughs only 3, 4 times a day. Minister Faust beat my quota. Hope to see more from him in the future. This was a refreshing, original read with flesh and blood characters and an interesting premise, not your usual stuff. Oddly, I was more interested in what the characters were going to do next than what the story was going to do next. That almost never happens with me, especially with SF, unless the characters start to feel familiar, feel like real people you feel like you know.



Rating:
Summary: Hilarious
Review: I enjoyed the writing style tremendously and especially the sci-fi/pop culture references. If you know what "grok", "Grand Moff", "Vger", "Mugatu", "Slash Maraud" "Jonah Hex", "The Final Reflection" is (for a start), you'll love this book! I think I got just about all the pop sci-fi references throughout the novel, which is scary as some were pretty obscure! :-)

That being said, the story does get strange at times and there were lots of African-centered references I didn't get.

Overall, a fine light read.





Rating:
Summary: A Great First
Review: I got this from my local library--one of those things that snagged my eye on the way out the door--and I'm glad I checked it out. Gaming geeks everywhere will appreciate the way Faust introduces (or reinforces) characters with stat sheets, a concept that made me giggle insanely with recognition. Hamza and Yehat are two extremely likable characters, and even the bad guys have human qualities, a really great touch that makes them more convincing (and hard to totally hate, even given some of the horrible things they do.)

Unfortunately, though, Sherem seems less inscrutable than one-dimensional and the mythology (or mythologies, some Nordic stuff rumbles in the background at one point) never seems to gel. I'm all for throwing more African fantasy into the mix (I'm of partly Irish descent, but ENOUGH with the Celts already), but perhaps a little more explication was needed. And, as another reviewer said, the ending was something of a letdown.

Overall, this was a very enjoyable read and hilarious in several places. Hopefully we haven't heard the last of Minister Faust or the Coyote Kings.

Rating:
Summary: I'm back... and I'm glad I went
Review: I just returned to normal reality from reading the Coyote Kings and, I'm glad I took the chance. This is definitely not in the normal galaxy of future fiction. I loved the journey... full characters, well-met... absolutely amazing language... inventive, fun, revelatory of another cultural world which I don't inhabit, but now I'd like to visit. The last chapter was a bit of a squeeze, with the meanings of life, death, and infinity, all trying to get in the elevator before the doors... and the last page.... closed. Still, overall, up there with the best.

I'll be watching the book shelves for something more from Minister Faust..



Rating:
Summary: I want to be a Coyote Queen
Review: I love, love, love this book. Its incredibly entertaining, funny as hell (who actually lol? i did, by the time i reached the tenth page i had laughed about three times and was starting to get strange looks from my fellow commuters but i couldnt help it), and just a lot of fun to read.
I've started pacing myself now that i'm in the final few chapters of the book because I dont want it to end. What other book is gonna give you a desert princess/assasin, a slew of psycho Fan Boys part of a drug ring that induces telepathic ability, two quirky best friends with a ton of issues and a suit of R-mer (lol), vendettas, a romantic story line, murders, caniballism...this book has a little something for everyone.

I can't really do Mr. Faust justice though, because the strongest part of the book is his writing ability/style. It's obvious he is a poet because the way he strings words together on a page, and some of the actual words he comes up with...are singular. his style is great, the story is entertaining, and i guarantee that you'll be singing this book's praises too by the time you finish the second chapter.

Rating:
Summary: clever, fun, somewhat dissappointing ending
Review: i picked this book up for no other reason than the opening sentence starts out "first off shut up." how can you not like a book that tells you to shut up on the very first page (not to mention that first page is the epilogue).

the characters are extremely refreshing for a science fiction novel, and knowing the target audience all the in-jokes and tip of the hat references to geekdom will leave you laughing out loud, while your uninitiated friends will just shake their heads silently at your new found depths of nerdiness. i was also pleasantly surprised by the characters unabashed affection for each other, it came over as very genuine and a trait severely lacking in science fiction.

the author employs a first person narrative that switches from character to character. in an interesting change of pace he doesn't hold your hand through this change and make it immediately obvious who's speaking, as you begin to get comfortable with characters you start to recognize the "voice". though at times you have to go back and re-read the first couple of pages of each chapter as it can take a while to cotton on to which character is talking. it isn't always successful, but the only time this character switch fails totally is when alpha-cat takes over and the author chooses to write phonetically the character's jamaican accent. it is frustrating to read and knocks you completely out of the narrative as you focus on comprehending the words and not the story. fortunately other than a couple of small chapters, alpha cat's dialog is limited to a few sprinkled throughout the book.

my only other complaint is the last act which had two major problems. there is essentially a rehash of the fight between the two main protagonists (yehat and hamza), with the same conclusion. it was redundant and out of character considering how the initial fight concluded. i also found the ambiguous ending, was too ambiguous without enough information to really come to a conclusion. there were also some pretty loose ends that were never tied up. i suppose that those could be set-ups for a sequel, which the author does hint at, but doesn't seem to have enough set-up to really make me desperate to read the further adventures of hamza and yehat.

still the characters, the very easy to read, cheeky prose, the interesting little details on african culture more than make up for the few small complaints.

Rating:
Summary: THIS BOOK IS AWESOME
Review: I read this about six months ago, and it still bounces around in my head. I check every couple of weeks to see when the next Faust book is coming out -- I truly hope this author is NOT a one-hit wonder! The book is entertaining in every sense a book can be - great characters, great plot, great writing style. I gave the book a friend who devoured it even quicker than I did, and we both agreed that it was one of the best we've read in recent memory (and both of us are avid readers). Do yourself a favor, get this book!
Oh - and to the poster who said the average adult laughs only 3 or 4 times a day??? That's so SAD! Maybe it's because I deal with seventh and eighth graders every day, and don't miss my daily quota of the Simpsons, but I KNOW my average is WAY higher than that!!!

Rating:
Summary: Space Passage Through The Coyote Kingdom
Review: Take a stroll through Minister Faust's E-town under his dexterously livid cape of imagination as he creates a narrative tapestry of pop-cultural and neo-african ancestral weaves. Get Mystery. Get Magic. Get Mission. Hey you Jimps, get the book!

Rating:
Summary: Coyote Kings, a mix of philosophy, science fiction and fun.
Review: The Coyote Kings is one of the best books I have ever read. The protagonists are intelligent, committed to social change, creative and funny. The story line engages in a way that keeps you thinking from the first paragraph to the last. The dialog is fast paced and prompts deep thought.
I wanted to have lunch with Hamza and Yehat to further discuss their ideas and to praise them on their friendship. Sherem is the woman I want my son to marry. Even the villians have a brilliance to them that you admire, despite your brain telling you you should hate them and their ideals. The author is extremely talented and I look forward to more of his work.



Rating:
Summary: Mystic and cool while grounded in here and now
Review: This book is rich in character development and contemporary touch points. I enjoyed the references to both stuff immediately accessible in my own life experience as well as from a distinctly different experience. The cultural elements that were new to me we're intriguing, and the settings made me want to travel. Highly recommended for all.