Well now, Joe Hill has thrown me for a bit of a loop with The Fireman. It fascinates me that he has managed to write an entirely different sort of book than I expected, and yet it still has me entirely enraptured. This book was excellent, and further proves to me that Hill's books will always be an auto-add to my reading list.

If you want to know a secret about me, I'm thoroughly intrigued by the concept of group think. The fact that people have the ability to completely lose themselves in fanaticism is terrifying and yet fascinating. Hill already had me sold with the idea of the Dragonfire sparking the end of the world. When he took it a step further, into the territory of cult behavior, I was helpless to look away.

Better still, are the somewhat paranormal elements that play a part in this story. Harper's story already had me hooked. A pregnant woman, burning from the inside out, caught up in a place where the people aren't at all who they seem. Then she was introduced fully to John, the fireman, and everything took on a whole new sheen. There was no possible way I was going to be able to resist this story. It grabbed my emotions by the reins and pulled. Hard. I was immersed from beginning to end.

Let's be honest, I already knew I was going to enjoy this book. What really impressed me was how much I enjoyed it, despite it not being at all what I expected. I was anticipating horror. I got that, for sure. Just not quite in the manner I was expecting. Hill is teaching me that sometimes the horror that people can create is often much more terrifying than any monster could ever be. Long story short, this was great. It needs a spot on your reading list.

Horrifying. Disturbing. Shameful. Criminal. Murderers. Five words I would use to describe a group of New Orleans police officers so out of control and above the law it's almost impossible to believe. Hurricane Katrina brought out the best in most and the worst in others. I don't care how unprepared, overwhelmed, and overworked the NOPD was for the devastation that Katrina left in her path, NO EXCUSE is ever going to convince me that the actions taken by these officers couldn't have been easily avoided. You had one job and it wasn't to kill innocent victims of natural disaster. I love New Orleans. It's a fabulous place with good, happy folk. This was painful to read. Heartbreaking.



*I was provided with a DRC from Edelweiss for review purposes. Opinions are my own. 

http://media.nola.com/crime_impact/photo/9713292-large.jpg

  The accused are found guilty.

The Danziger Bridge shootings were police shootings that took place on September 4, 2005, at the Danziger Bridge in New Orleans, Louisiana. Six days after Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans, members of the New Orleans Police Department killed two civilians: 17-year-old James Brissette and 40-year-old Ronald Madison.

Danziger Bridge shootings - Wikipedia

So, this book is improving! Not quite as much as I had hoped, but it's much better than it was at the beginning. The characters are finally being fleshed out, and I'm actually starting to care for them.

The biggest issue for me is that this book seems to be going into love triangle territory. I really, REALLY hope that it doesn't do that. Books never lose me faster than with a "convenient" love triangle. There are better ways to build tension.

I'm thinking this is a solid 3. We'll see whether or not it makes it into 4 territory.

I needed a new audio, and then I saw that The Fireman is narrated by Kate Mulgrew. Sold. SOLD. She's an amazing narrator, and I've been meaning to get to this anyway.

Is it weird that even though I'd burn up, I kind of think Dragonscale is beautiful? This book definitely has my attention. It's a different kind of Joe Hill book, and I dig that.

Trying to work my way through this in the midst of Halloween bingo reads, so that I can post a review around the release date. So far, it's not quite as good as I had hoped. The premise is amazing, but the characters have yet to really live up to that promise. Three queens battling for the throne, each from a separate school of magic. Sounds amazing, right? I sure hope so. I really want things to pick up.