Review of Killbox

	Killbox by Ann Aguirre 368pp (Paperback) My Rating: 8/10 Amazon Rating: 5/5 LibraryThing Rating: 4.33/5 Goodreads Rating: 4.72/5

Killbox, the fourth book in the Sirantha Jax series by Ann Aguirre, was released on August 31. The other books in this space opera series are Grimspace, Wanderlust and Doubleblind, in that order. There will be six books total in the series with Aftermath scheduled for September 2011 and Endgame for September 2012.

Please note that since this is the fourth book in a series, there will be spoilers for the first three books. This is a series that I would definitely recommend reading in order beginning with Grimspace (review).

After leaving Ithiss-Tor, Jax sends a message that she is quitting her job as a diplomat the first chance she gets. It's not that she doesn't want to do her part to save humanity (and any other species that refrains from hostile actions such as devouring the flesh of anyone it feels like eating) - but diplomacy has never really been her strength. Instead, she takes an apprentice jumper and begins teaching him how to traverse grimspace.

Daily life is not as safe as it used to be, and for some peculiar reason the Morgut appear to be targeting scientists. As more and more people are attacked by the deadly Morgut, Jax and her friends realize that there are serious consequences to destroying the corrupt Farwan, which at least had a large number of patrols dedicated to aiding those in trouble. The Conglomerate comes to the same realization and offers March a position as commander of a new armada - with free reign to be "creative" due to limited funding and the urgency of defending the universe. Although it is a lot of responsibility, it's also impossible to refuse, and the crew begins gathering a force of mercenaries of ill repute as the last hope against the Morgut threat.

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After the political diplomacy in Doubleblind, this book packs in a lot more action. In spite of (or perhaps because of) this, it actually took a little longer for me to get emotionally involved in Killbox than the previous three novels, although I was very much emotionally involved by the time it ended. The beginning is not at all slow, quite the opposite - I was just being impatient about wanting to see certain threads from the last book picked up. The previous installment dealt a lot with Vel, my favorite character in the series, and I was hoping to see some of the parts about him from it followed up on some more. Although it took a little while to get to them, there were definitely some great scenes with Vel that I'm now hoping to see continued in the next novel.

There's lots of danger, excitement and battles, and Aguirre continues to maintain an excellent balance between moving the plot forward and developing the characters. At first it did seem as though there was more adventure and less of the character moments, but there were some - they were just mainly with March. Ever since the second book, I've much preferred reading about the friendships Jax has developed to the romance, especially her relationships with the alien Vel and the ship's mechanic Dina, an exiled princess. By the time it reached the big cliffhanger ending, not only had there been some fantastic conversations with both Vel and Dina, but it had definitely also taken me on an emotionally harrowing journey. The last 50 - 60 pages made me cry not just once but twice (which rarely happens at all).

Another major highlight is the return of some characters we haven't seen since the very first book, but the most rewarding part is the development of Jax herself. She continues to grow as a character and has changed so much since the first book. Even better, just how much she has grown is shown through her actions - we're not just told she's not the same Jax but we're shown time and again that she has come a long way since the first book. It did get on my nerves a little that we were told she wasn't the same so many times instead of just letting her deeds speak for themselves, but considering the story is told from Jax's perspective, I don't think it's unrealistic. Someone who has undergone as much of a metamorphosis as she has over the course of this series is probably going to be continually amazed by the contrast between how she reacts now and how she would have reacted just a short time ago.

The writing itself has also improved since the first novel. While is still mainly straightforward and sometimes fractured prose as it's told from Jax's perspective in present tense, there were a couple of phrases and observations that struck me as lovely. The turmoil at the end especially was very moving.

It was somewhat annoying that March and Jax were apart yet again in this book. Although the reason behind it was logical, the fact that it keeps happening over and over again is making it feel contrived to me. It's starting to seem like every book needs to have a new dilemma for keeping some tension in the romance so it doesn't get stale before the final book.

Overall, this is a strong addition to the Sirantha Jax series. It has plenty of action and adventure, the characters continue to grow, and the writing has matured since the first book. One final word of advice: do have a box of tissues handy and be prepared to curse the book for ending where it does.

My Rating: 8/10

Where I got my reading copy: Review copy from the publisher.

Read Chapter One

Other Reviews:

• Dreams and Speculation
• Lurv a la Mode

Reviews of other books in this series:

• Grimspace
  
• Wanderlust
• Doubleblind

The Leaning Pile of Books

Since I'm going on a shopping trip on the day I'm posting this and there's a book I may get to read soon, this week's edition may actually be longer than what is below. I'll have to save it for next week if I do, though, because I don't expect to have much time to get this post ready on Sunday and am therefore writing it beforehand.

So for this week, I have two review copies (one of which I will be reading very soon).

Killbox by Ann Aguirre

This would be the book I'll be reading pretty soon. This fourth book out of six total in the Jax series will be released on August 31 (according to Amazon) or September (according to Ann Aguirre's website). I really enjoy this series because it is just so much fun - fast-paced space opera adventure that maintains a great balance between action and character development plus some romance (more in some books than others). The first chapter is available online.

TALK IS CHEAP WHEN LIVES ARE IN JEOPARDY

Sirantha Jax is a “Jumper,” a woman who possesses the unique genetic makeup needed to navigate faster than light ships through grimspace. With no tolerance for political diplomacy, she quits her ambassador post so she can get back to saving the universe the way she does best—by mouthing off and kicking butt.

And her tactics are needed more than ever. Flesh-eating aliens are attacking stations on the outskirts of space, and for many people, the Conglomerate’s forces are arriving too late to serve and protect them.

Now, Jax must take matters into her own hands by recruiting a militia to defend the frontiers—out of the worst criminals, mercenaries, and raiders that ever traveled through grimspace…

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Factotum by D. M. Cornish

This is the third book in the Monster Blood Tattoo series. It's coming to Australia and New Zealand in October and the United States on November 11. I've had the first book in this YA series on my TBR for a little while. I have to admit the series name put me off a bit since it sounds gory to me, but the reviews I've read (which have all been very positive) seem to indicate this is not the case.

Rossamund Bookchild stands accused of not truly being a human at all, but of being a monster. Even the protection of Europe, the Branden Rose the most feared and renowned monster-hunter in all the Half-Continent might not be enough to save him. Powerful forces move against them both, intent on capturing Rossamund whose existence some believe may hold the secret to perpetual youth.

Review of Doubleblind

	Doubleblind by Ann Aguirre 320pp (Paperback) My Rating: 8/10 Amazon Rating: 5/5 LibraryThing Rating: 4.3/5 Goodreads Rating: 4.38/5

Doubleblind is the third book in the Jax series by Ann Aguirre. This romantic space opera series should definitely be read in order - Grimspace, then Wanderlust, and finally this book. The fourth book, Killbox, is scheduled for release in October 2010, and there are supposed to be six books total.

Note: There are spoilers for the previous book in the plot description. If you haven't read the first two books and want to avoid spoilers but still want to hear some about the book/series, skip past the part of this review above the horizontal line. Everything below the line is safe.

Sirantha Jax now finds herself in one of the most precarious situations yet - as a diplomat to Ithiss-Tor, a planet inhabited by a bug-like race of aliens who despise humans. If Jax does not succeed in procuring an agreement with the Ithtorians, all of humanity will pay the price for her failure. More and more human settlements have been attacked by the Morgut race of aliens, and the only way they can think of to protect themselves is to get the Ithtorians, whom the Morgut respect and fear, on their side. Since Jax is in the unique position of being the only human to befriend an Ithtorian (the bounty hunter Vel who once tried to kill her), she was chosen to represent humanity with Vel's assistance as a guide and translator.

Meanwhile, Jax must also contend with the problem of March, who has still not recovered from the war he fought in the previous book. Ever since then, he's been ready to kill anything that moves, and he no longer feels anything for Jax although he sticks with her because he can remember caring for her once. Jax refuses to give up on him and keeps him as part of her entourage even though she worries he may go crazy and jeopardize their mission. Instead of having to do one impossible task, she has determined to do two - secure an alliance with the Ithtorians and fix whatever is wrong with March.

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Ever since I first read Grimspace shortly after it came out, Ann Aguirre has become an auto-buy author for me. The moment one of her books comes out I run to the bookstore and buy it. Actually, that's not quite true - ever since I discovered books are sometimes on the shelves before their release date, I've tried to find her books a little early. I was so excited about Doubleblind that I looked for it three times in the same week and was rewarded by finding it one week early. As soon as I finished the book I was reading at the time, I started Doubleblind (which is rare for me as I tend to have book ADHD when it comes to what to read next).

This series appeals to me because they are fast-paced, entertaining, and have some great characters that I really enjoy reading about. Sometimes they are humorous, other times they are touching and they are always pure fun. They keep a great balance between character development/relationships and a plot that moves at a pretty good clip. Plus they are relatively short and easy to read (while I love long books, sometimes it's nice to read something that isn't going to take me more than 2 or 3 days to get through).

This newest novel was a little slower paced at the beginning and a bit harder to get hooked on than the previous two books for me. As with the previous book, the first chapter was largely summary of who everyone was and where the book had left off, but I was still completely unable to put the previous installment down by chapter 3. Although I did get to the point of not wanting to put this one down as well, it did take a bit longer than normal compared to the other books in the series.

Doubleblind was less action-packed than the previous books and more about politics and diplomacy, which I rather enjoyed once it did get going. One of my favorite types of space opera is the type in which a different people or species with a very different way of life is explored. Learning more about the Ithtorians was the main highlight for me, particularly since it revealed a lot more about the alien former bounty-hunter Vel.

Vel has become the most interesting character in the series to me, although perhaps that's at least partially because I like outcasts as well as inhuman characters who occasionally show glimpses of humanity. Not only do we get to see the planet he came from in this book, but we also get to find out more about his past and why he left his home in the first place. Plus there are a few little bits of information about him that will hopefully be described in further detail in future installments. One of my favorite parts of Wanderlust was Vel and his developing friendship with Jax, and their interactions remained one of my favorite parts of this novel as well.

Jax herself has also grown a lot, as can be seen from her refusal to give up on March and her seriousness about her role as a diplomat. The roles have been reversed in her relationship - March used to always be the one looking out for Jax but now she's the one looking out for him. Their situation (referred to in the above plot summary) provides some conflict for their relationship, but ever since the second book I've felt the focus has shifted away from the romance and more toward friendships. This one has more romance than the previous book, but I still felt that the plot and friendships were a better reason to keep reading.

Other than Vel, March and of course Jax herself, most of the other characters are in the background in this book. They show up but they don't undergo any major development.

Although I do find the Jax series to be immensely entertaining, this does not mean I don't have to suspend my disbelief quite a bit when reading them. I don't mean because it has psychics, aliens, genetically engineered super people, talking computers and all the things I love about space opera. In this book, I found it difficult to believe that anyone would send Jax on a diplomatic mission of supreme importance. Although it becomes clear in this novel that she's matured a lot, not all that long ago Jax was a party-girl infamous for getting drunk and flashing her tits in bars. She does not seem like the responsible type one would trust with the fate of the galaxy. Sure, she had a genuine Ithtorian to help her, but Vel was an outcast on Ithiss-Tor since he ran away from it and lived among the humans. So I don't see why his presence would help endear them to the Ithtorians, although it was useful that he could teach Jax what she needed to know about their customs. Not only did they send Jax to Ithiss-Tor as a diplomat, but they did not send any humans with actual experience in this arena to keep an eye on her and make sure no disasters occurred, which would have at least made a little more sense to me.

Also, there was one point toward the end where Jax and Vel were trying to solve a mystery and the solution seemed rather obvious long before they figured it out. Although I can see Jax having difficulty putting two and two together, it really seemed like Vel should be smarter than that, although I suppose he didn't have some of the information that Jax did.

Even though I did find it difficult to believe at times and a bit more difficult to get into than the other two books in the series, Doubleblind was as much fun as the previous books once it got going. Jax is still a great heroine to read about, and if you are a fan of Vel or curious about Ithiss-Tor, you definitely won't want to miss this one!

8/10

How I got my reading copy: As mentioned in my review, I bought this one.

Read an excerpt

Other Reviews of Doubleblind:

• Calico Reaction

Reviews of other books in the Jax series:

• Grimspace (#1)
• Wanderlust (#2)

Review of Wanderlust

	Wanderlust by Ann Aguirre 320pp (Paperback) My Rating: 8/10 Amazon Rating: 4.5/5 LibraryThing Rating: 5/5 Goodreads Rating: 4.34/5

Wanderlust, which just came out this past Tuesday, is the second book in Ann Aguirre's Jax series following her debut novel Grimspace. Grimspace did have the distinction of being the most entertaining, easy to get into and most difficult to put down book I had read this year - at least until I read Wanderlust, which I liked even better. Fair warning for those who haven't read Grimspace yet: some spoilers follow.

After exposing the corruption and deception of the Farwan Corporation, Sirantha has been sequestered from the rest of the crew and questioned for many days. Because of this, she is expecting more interrogation when she is summoned to the conference room. Instead Sirantha finds herself reunited with her telepathic boyfriend March and ship's mechanic Dina and offered a job as an ambassador for the Conglomerate. If she accepts her first task is convincing the bug-like aliens on Ithiss-Tor to join the Conglomerate, since Sirantha is in the unique position of having befriended one of them, the bounty hunter Velith who was sent to kill her in the last book.

Although ambassador is not Sirantha's first choice of jobs, it is difficult to refuse the money, especially after discovering her despicable husband wiped out all her funds when she was declared prematurely dead. To further complicate matters, Sirantha's mother shows up and says someone has threatened to kill her unless her daughter takes the job. The would-be assassins consider Sirantha the only acceptable candidate; they are opposed to Ithiss-Tor joining the Conglomerate, and think Sirantha has an excellent chance of screwing up negotiations. In spite of the danger, Sirantha, March, Dina and Vel begin the journey to Ithiss-Tor with several mishaps along the way.

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Wanderlust was never difficult to get into but the earliest chapters did not immerse me into the book quite as quickly as its predecessor did - mainly since there was a lot of recap interspersed with new plot in the first chapter. The viewpoint is first person from Jax's (often humorous) point of view so when she kept interjecting thoughts that would be very obvious to her by now about March being a telepath or how Kai died, it did not seem natural. Chapter 1 is short, as all the chapters are, and this was not something I noticed much after that so this was a minor quibble, especially considering there was enough introduction to the new book in this section to keep me interested.

Once I got past the first couple of chapters, it was very difficult to put the book down. It's very fast-paced and I always ended the chapter wanting to read the next one to find out what happened next. Sirantha's perspective is told in present tense which just adds to the urgency when she or one of the other characters is in danger.

In spite of a lot of action and adventure, this is not a book that is all about the plot and equal time is dedicated Sirantha herself and her relationships with the other crew members. Sirantha, our mouthy, bald, and scarred heroine, has lost a lot and deals with paranoia from being the center of so many conspiracies. She's tough and sarcastic on the outside but vulnerable to the core. Reading about interaction between the crew members is as much fun as reading about their adventures. Sirantha and Dina are constantly ragging on each other but are obviously good friends in spite of the way they sound. March and Sirantha have a complicated relationship and Vel's attempts at learning human customs make him quite endearing.

Although the characters are not particularly deep or complex, they are interesting and very likable. Everyone seems to be fighting the demons from their past and present. March had a difficult time adjusting to his telepathic abilities and has a dark side that comes out at times, and Dina was a member of a royal family until her parents and siblings died. In addition to the humans, there are some interesting alien species and one of the more intriguing characters is the bounty hunter Vel, known as a "Slider" because he can wear human skin and slide into someone else's life, appearing indistinguishable from the real person he's imitating.

From start to finish, Wanderlust had me hooked with its submergence of fast-paced action, humor, and enjoyable characters. I read this book in a day, which I almost never do anymore, but I always had to read "just one more chapter." Highly recommended to anyone looking for a light and diverting story that draws you in easily and keeps you reading.

8/10

Read the first chapter online

Reviews of other books in this series:
Grimspace (#1)

Contest for $200 To Spend on Books

It doesn't get much better than this - Ann Aguirre is giving away $200 to spend at the bookseller of your choice! All you have to do is buy a copy of Wanderlust when it comes out on August 26 or preorder a copy and post either your receipt number or order confirmation number in the comments of this post on her blog. The contest runs until September 3.

Wanderlust is the second book in the Sirantha Jax series, following Aguirre's debut novel released earlier this year, Grimspace (review).

I didn't need any incentive to buy Wanderlust since I was planning to do so anyway as soon as it came out -- its predecessor is exactly the type of book I'm in the mood to read right now -- but now I really must buy it. It would be a dream come true - I'd have to spend the money on books so I wouldn't even have to feel guilty about spending so much money on them. I'm already dreaming of which books I'd get from the wish list if I had $200...

What books would you get if you could go on a $200 book-buying binge?