Would you like fries with that?

After the day I've had, I lack the focus to do anything more involved than a review roundup. And so, with no further ado, I present...the review roundup. Again, it's cut-tagged because it's huge; I'm trying to winnow the list enough to get back to my customary sets of five.

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Since I'm currently trying to clear out all the older reviews from my link file, thus enabling me a) to post reviews of newer books while they're still, you know, new, and b) to find the non-review links I saved because I wanted to write about them, I thought I should take a moment to explain my position on reviews. Namely...

1. I don't link to every positive review I find.
Yes, good is good, and everybody likes a little good news, but some reviews are very brief, or don't say anything especially new. I appreciate and am honored by every review that I receive. That doesn't mean I want to subject people to the all-reviews, all-the-time channel. That's a good way to get myself hit.

2. I don't go looking for reviews.
I'm way past the point of ego-surfing looking for reviews of my books, and I've found that, on the whole, I'm happier if I only read the things people email me links to, or that are found by my Google spiders. So if I don't post about your awesome review full of witty comments and deep thoughts, it may be because I never saw it. Or it may be because, as now, I'm three books behind in the file. Both things can happen.

3. I don't read Amazon or Goodreads reviews at all.
This is a hard rule. For serious. Some of the reviews posted on those sites seem to have been written by people who think authors don't have feelings, and while I try to say "judging the work, not judging me," it's really hard when people get personal. So I just don't go there, and everyone stays happier.

4. I don't generally link to negative reviews unless they have something really interesting to say.
I've had a few people say, somewhat sharply, that I'm a Pollyanna when it comes to reviews; I just post the good ones. This is largely true. There are two reasons for this: one is selfish, and one is altruistic. Selfishly...this is my journal. Why should I link to people saying bad things about my stories? I love those stories. They're my babies. Altruistically, most of the people who read this journal are here because they love those stories, too. I don't want to unleash a swarm of flying monkeys on some blogger who was just having an honest opinion, and then found themselves unexpectedly linked to by the author. It's not nice, it's not fair, and I'm not that kind of a girl.

5. I make no promises as to the timeliness of my links.
I have had one reviewer—just one—email and yell at me because their long, thoughtful review hadn't been linked to three weeks after it was posted. It's August, and I'm posting reviews from October. I love linking to reviews. It makes me happy. But wow, are there no guarantees as to when it's going to happen.

A vague disclaimer is nobody's friend!

Yes, it's another super-sized review roundup, because seriously, if I don't get some of the links out of this file, I'm never going to find the floor. Fifteen links, all confirmed as currently valid, no waiting.

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So here's the deal:

Every time I let my link list get away from me, it gets a little more away from me than it did the last time. At first, it wasn't making it out of the yard, and now it's halfway to Tijuana, and I think it took the car. This will not stand. So while I have a usual rule of "five links to a roundup, to keep things from getting vile," this time, I'm doing fifteen links, and I'm doing them behind a cut-tag. Otherwise, you'll be seeing the One Salt Sea reviews hitting the top of the list right around the time Ashes of Honor comes out, and how useful is that?

If you like the review roundups, click away, and if you don't, don't. I'll have a less review-y post in a little bit.

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Must. Post. Reviews. Must. Not. Drown in links. So here:

Man in Black Reviews has posted a fabulous review of Deadline, and says, "I commented that the Newsflesh trilogy opening was one of the better novels I have read in several years, that it had nowhere up left to go, and that the second novel, Deadline, would have no choice but to go down. I come here today to eat those words, because Deadline goes anywhere but down hill." Woo!

Blogcritics has also posted a lovely review of Deadline, and says, "Grant takes the political intrigue of Feed and ratchets it up to 11 to a stunning conclusion in Deadline. And we can only hope that the next book of the trilogy—Blackout—serves to answer some of the questions asked in the first two books. The only bad part is we have to wait a while for those answers when Blackout is released in May 2012. I'm not sure I can wait another year!!" Neither am I!

Everything's better with Feed, right? Well, Alysha De Shae has posted a lovely review of Feed. There are no real pull quotes this time, but it's a good, solid review, and I appreciated it.

Our friends at Geek Speak Magazine have posted an awesome review of Feed, and say, "I’ve lost count of how many people I have recommended this book to, and/or bought this book for. Twenty? Thirty? Fifty? Maybe more. It is just one of those rare books you start to read and then just cannot stop, no matter what else is happening in your life that demands your immediate attention. You. Cannot. Stop. And then, when you come to the end of it, you’re all like HOLY FUCK, did that just really happen? That was INCREDIBLE!" Also: "There is not a zombie story anywhere that compares to Feed. For mine, it is the single best genre book of last year, bar none."

Sniffle.

I can't top that review right now, and so I won't even try. Here. Go listen to me hanging out on the Orbit podcast, instead.

More soon.

The links. Oh sweet Great Pumpkin, the links. And now it's time for another review roundup, because I'd like to eventually be able to view my entire link soup on a single screen again. (Like that's ever going to happen.)

First up, an absolutely fucking amazing review of Deadline from Paul Goat Allen at the Barnes & Noble Book Club. Paul says:

"While I impatiently awaited the release of the second Newsflesh novel, Deadline, I knew that it probably wouldn’t be as jaw-droppingly extraordinary and satisfying as Feed—middle volumes are generally the least satisfying installments in trilogies, at least for me.

"I'm happy to report that I was wrong.

"Deadline cranks everything up to volume 11. The mythical conspiracy that Shaun and his team are striving to uncover expands to mind-boggling proportions. The pacing is breakneck, desperate, and the action is literally nonstop throughout—and that’s saying something for a 582-page book! Major characters die. Entire cities are wiped out. The end of the world approaches..."

I call this review a win, no?

With Regards has also posted a lovely Deadline review, and says, "That, my friends, is the trademark of a good novel. When a person will, quite literally, debate on whether or not having dinner is as important as reading the next chapter...Well, you know you've written a damned good story. Deadline is a fantastic novel that I cannot praise highly enough."

When I make people late for dinner, I call that an unquestionable win.

From an unexpected and awesome corner comes this joint review of Feed and Deadline from fellow Hugo nominee Howard Tayler of Schlock Mercenary. Howard says, "I loved Feed. The story isn't really about the zombies. It's about some bloggers who get hired to cover a presidential candidate. The zombies in this tale are more like wallpaper. That moves. And then tries to eat your face. Okay, the book IS about the zombies, but there's ever so much more to it than that. And Deadline? EVEN BETTER." Duuuuuuuuuuude.

For our LJ review of the day, have this short, sweet review from chaiya. No pull quotes, but some lovely sincerity, and a very nice review overall. Thank you!

Finally (for right now) here's The Word Zombie sounding out on Deadline. Quote: "With Feed, Mira Grant established herself as a major new voice in zombie fiction. With Deadline, she proves that 'zombie' is a superfluous addition to that accolade. Without the subtlety of her storytelling, the layers of conspiracy at the heart of this book would have ripped apart like so many sheets of rice paper. Instead, she parceled out the story with the literary timing of Stephen King at his best, while managing to do what King has suffered with so much in recent years—tying the story together in the end and leaving the reader with an emotional punch akin to being hit in the chest with a Taser."

...whoa. I'm, uh, just going to leave things there for right now.

And go call my Mom.

Nothing says "hooray for Thursday" like a review roundup. No, really. It's a totally unique way of saying "hooray for Thursday." Anyway...

The Devourer of Books has posted a Deadline review, and says, "As in Feed, the zombies are not the point, but more a part of the setting, telling a story of news, blogs, politics, and the culture of fear. It is this that makes the Newsflesh series so successful for me. Grant is using her zombie setting to tell us all a story about ourselves." Woo!

Here's something new: a Feed review posted at the Game Vortex, which says, "It is probably the best novel that I've read in years and I read more than a book a week. The real genius of the novel is that yes, it is a horror novel, but the horror is not because of the zombies. The real horror is found in the human beings that are left in the world and their actions upon each other." Awesome.

...and hey, look, it's the Game Vortex review of Deadline. This one says, "As I said about Feed, it is probably one of the best novels that I have read in years. Deadline picks up right there and continues the amazing story. When I got to the end of Deadline, I really did not want to believe that it was over. Now, I cannot wait for the next novel, Blackout." It's nice not to disappoint.

Flights of Fantasy has posted a Deadline review, and says, "If you loved Feed, I strongly advise you pick up Deadline, ASAP. It’s a good read. I finished it, cover to cover in about a day and a half or so. And if you haven’t read Feed, go pick it up." That works for me!

Finally for today, here's the Fantasy Magazine review of Feed, which says, "The sibs are entertaining company, their thoroughly extrapolated post-apocalyptic world is a terrific setting, the SF zombies are skillfully rationalized, the body count is high, and the plot delivers some unexpected twists." Rock and roll.

Rock and roll and zombies.

1. I am basically over The Death Plague From Hell at this point, but I remain exhausted and behind on damn near everything. I'm catching up as fast as I can, but with 500+ LJ comments and nearly as many emails to go through, I'm having to do a lot more "is this actually urgent?" triage than I like. Please be patient, and don't yell at me if two whole days go by without my getting back to you.

2. While I'm asking for favors...please don't link me to Goodreads or Amazon reviews. I really and truly try to avoid reviews on those sites, because they just make me sad and twitchy. (Yes, there are excellent, erudite, well-composed reviews in both places. But the number of mean or thoughtless reviews is very high, and frankly, I don't have the energy to filter through them looking for the good stuff.)

3. If you missed the Deadline book release, or if Toby is more your cup of tea, remember that I will be back at Borderlands Books this coming Saturday, appearing alongside the fabulous Ben Macallan (aka Chaz Brenchley). He's asked me to join him so he'll have a partner for cards if no one shows up. Let's surprise him by having EVERYONE show up. I'll be reading from my new Tybalt prequel story, and there may be some awesome unexpected giveaways...

4. Everyone on the Wicked Girls shirt spreadsheet should have received their initial emails at this point. If you don't have one, please check your spam filter, as the email from Deborah (coming from a Gmail.com address) is somehow not getting to you. If you think I may have the wrong address for you, please let me know ASAP.

5. My house is an absolute disaster zone, and I'm going to need help cleaning out the closets soon. If you're local, not allergic to cats, and think spending a day going through the things I have shoved into my shelves would be fun, drop me a line. This is less "cleaning" and more "de-cluttering, purging, and organizing," which means it's less physical labor, more Tetris for the live-action set.

...so in short, please be patient, and I will try to deal with all emergencies in the order in which they were received.

Again, links eat world. But also, as of today, we are ninety-five days out from the release of One Salt Sea, and that means I need to make sure people remember Toby! So here is today's Toby-centric review roundup.

We start with a review of Rosemary and Rue by Fuzzy Steve, who says, "Damn good. Classic Urban fantasy, with a strong female lead. If you like the Dresden files, you'll probably like these. So give the first book a chance." I like "damn good" as a sales pitch, frankly.

Also Rosemary and Rue-related, although a bit more specialized, here's the Unshelved Book Club review of the audio edition, which says, "My previous attempts to listen to urban fantasy novels left me thinking I needed to read a faerie encyclopedia. But McGuire gave all the background necessary to Daye's world, with all the grit, deception, and intrigue I feel is essential to a mystery. And Kowal voiced the characters—both otherworldly and human—with distinction, personality, and just the right amount of tension." Yay!

Moving on to a later book, Fantasy Literature has reviewed Late Eclipses, and says, "The world-building is great, featuring a plethora of fae beings from folklore, and the political intrigue is always interesting. Late Eclipses has the added bonus of new revelations about the nature of Toby's mother, Amandine, and of Toby herself. Yes, I love these books. Even when they're flawed." She goes on to call out several of these flaws, and they're a fair cop; this is a good review.

It's time for another Book Pushers review! Yay! This time, it's a review of Late Eclipses, and says, "Late Eclipses is a solid and enjoyable entry in the series. Lush mythology and darkly imaginative and tense, I was caught up with the mystery and developments that bring forward ongoing plots and characters. I eagerly await for the next book, to see what else will be unveiled."

Finally, for right now (since I try to stop at five links), the Cookies, Books, and Bikes review of An Artificial Night, which says, "I throughly enjoyed this book. It was completely engrossing and I loved learning more about many of the other characters within this book." Rock and roll.

And that's it for today. More soon.

The countdown sort of scrambled my ability to stay afloat in the link soup over here, and so, in an effort to stop myself from drowning, I present Deadline reviews and interviews. Because otherwise, you may never find my body.

Our friends at BookBanter have posted a conveniently spoiler-tagged for Feed review of Deadline, and say, "Once again Grant has achieved the incredible with a long story of over six hundred pages that will have you wide eyed and mouth wateringly hooked from the very first to the very last. Middle books in trilogies are often weak compared to the strong start and captivating end, but Deadline is a worthy next installment that is as good as Feed in many ways, making it feel more like a continuation of the same book." Also, I am compared to Stephen King and Dean Koontz, making this THE BEST REVIEW EVER.

Keeping up our BookBanter party, I did an interview for them as Mira Grant, and we discuss lots of lovely things, including what Seanan and Mira have in common, what Mira does for fun, and what's coming up next. You should give it a read! Plus you can win a book if you do.

Kind of an interview and kind of not: I did another Big Idea piece for John Scalzi's Whatever, this time all about the concepts and science behind Deadline. It was fun and challenging to write, and you should definitely stop by and see what drove me to another 150,000 words of sheer insanity.

My Bookish Ways has posted an excellent review of Deadline, and says, "Sometimes it's hard to follow up such amazing work, and sometimes second novels in a series suffer a bit. Not Deadline. It's just as good as Feed, and you'll find yourself plowing through this 600+ page novel in no time. I missed quite a bit of sleep finishing this one up. Was it worth it? Totally." I am the cause of insomnia!

Finally (for now), Pen and Ink, Camera and Keyboard has posted a nice review of Deadline, and says, "Deadline is a great book, it's well written and genuinely enthralling." Also: "The build up at first feels off with a climatic introduction and action packed first chapters, only for everything to simmer down. That's until you realize that something big is building and when you finally hit the last act, well the terrible realization of the sheer scope is palpable. There's a section where Shaun and co are driving home and it's like the eye of a storm...the eerie silence before the shit hits the fan."

I cause insomnia AND terrible realizations! I win!

And that's all for the moment. I will now go sleep the sleep of the just and exhausted.

Am I behind on my review roundups? Yes. Yes, I am. Am I about to drown in links? Yes. Yes, I am. So here. Reviews for you!

First up for this batch, Paul Goat Allen wrote one of the most beautiful explanations of the Toby Daye books I've ever seen over the Barnes & Noble Book Club, and said, "For me, these novels are ultimately about Toby's inner quest—her search to find herself, her place in the world, not some soul mate or better half who will 'complete' her. It’s delicious existential speculation wrapped up in fantastical candy-coated shell. That's why this unique and addictively readable saga resonates so powerfully with me—I identify with Toby as the proverbial outsider, the seeker, the misunderstood hero."

Um. Wow.

The Discriminating Fangirl posted a lovely review of Late Eclipses, and says, "I think this is my favorite book in the series so far. Everything that I loved about the first three books came together in a perfect storm of awesomeness in Late Eclipses. The plot is smooth, engrossing, and terribly exciting." Also: "If you’re already a fan of the Toby Daye series, Late Eclipses definitely won’t disappoint. If you’re a newbie looking for some great, original urban fantasy, get thee to a bookstore and pick up this series. You won’t be disappointed." Victory!

Charlaine Harris listed Late Eclipses as one of her books of the week, and says, "Seanan McGuire is another of my favorites, and Late Eclipses continues her saga of the life of October Daye, a true and acknowledged hero in the world of the fae." Also: "It's impossible not to like Toby." Could someone tell the Queen of the Mists that? It would make book six ever so much easier to write.

Angela over at The Outhouse has posted a review of Late Eclipses, and says, "For the past three books, I cringed at the 1st person narrative that gave little details painstakingly slow about Toby’s life. For the past three books I wanted to grab October by the shirt and ask her why won’t she push farther into her odd standings with Tybalt. For the last three books, I nearly cried when Toby would just bend over and take it from the Fae court. And now here is the fourth fantastic book and it has been worth every little bit of frustrating agony! Seanan McGuire is a sneaky woman, knowing how to play her audience like a fiddle book by delicious book; never giving too much, but making you want a whole of a lot more." I'm a fiddler! Amy would be so proud.

Finally, for right now, it's our requisite LJ review, from ambermoon, who has posted a lovely review of Late Eclipses. She says, "Each novel passes the Bechdel Test with flying colors, and I love the heroine. Toby (short for October) is smart, funny, sarcastic, and believable. She's capable without being either 'too good at everything' or unwilling to accept help. She gets literally carried several times, but I never felt her agency was reduced. She has maternal aspects without that being the source of her strength or relegating her to a caretaker role. She can sometimes be a jerk, and sometimes seems almost deliberately obtuse about personal matters, and she's extremely stubborn. The books are first-person narration so Toby carries all the action, and she doesn't disappoint." Yay!

That's all for today. Next up, Deadline reviews! Yay!

I am sick even unto death, and so I am not really capable of the kind of coherent and thoughtful blogging that I try to provide. Instead, I am going to provide something truly awesome: a starred Publishers Weekly review of Deadline. Behold:

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I have to do this occasionally, or the file I use to store my links may actually CATCH FIRE and EXPLODE. True fact. It's been known to happen. Anyway...

Kenda over at Lurv ala Mode has posted a review of Late Eclipses, and says, "This series is an exceptional example of unique urban fantasy, with characters that grow more and more in depth with each installment. The plots for each book are twisted and complicated, enough so that interest is piqued and toe tip pressure never lessens since we’re constantly on them. The series isn’t complacent, as it ups the excitement and action and development overall with each book. And that, fellow readers, is how I like it." Yeah, that's a long pull quote, but it's an awesome review, and it waited a long time to be posted. So I'm sharing my enthusiasm.

Kristen at Fantasy Book Cafe has posted a review of Late Eclipses (and how is it that my early reviews are being linked so late this time? Uncool, blonde girl...), and says, "Late Eclipses had everything I’ve come to love about the October Daye series and then some since it exceeded my expectations. It’s a lot of fun with some very satisfying revelations and is the strongest installment in the series yet." Yay!

But what about the seeeeexy? Well, Rebecca at Dirty Sexy Books has posted a review of Late Eclipses, and says, "Is it too early to look forward to the next book in the October Daye series?" No. No, it is not.

calico_reaction provides our obligatory Livejournal review, and says, "This installment is my favorite to date, horribly difficult to put down. There's so many revelations in this book that really cast Toby and her purpose in a new light, and the cast is just delightful. I can't say more without gushing, so I'll shut up, and say that if you're an urban fantasy fan and you haven't at least read up to book three, An Artificial Night, you're missing out. And if you're already a fan, you definitely don't want to miss this one." Hooray! No, like, seriously, hooray.

Finally for this batch, SFRevu Review has posted a review of Late Eclipses, and says, "A great installment in a series that is becoming a must-read, Late Eclipses will satisfy even the most demanding urban fantasy reader."

On that short, sweet note, I conclude this review roundup and return to my word count for the evening. Catch you soon!

It's time to do another review roundup, as not only are my links getting out of control, I've started losing things in the mucky morass of twisty words, and that's not fun for anybody. Least of all, let's be honest here, me.

Travels Through Iest has posted a Late Eclipses review, and says, "Late Eclipses is another welcome addition to Toby's exploits." Also (and I like this part), "Seanan is proving to be somewhat of a literary chameleon with this series, so far she's written them in a noirish Chandleresque style, something reminiscent of Agatha Christie and now Late Eclipses which has elements of a Grisham type legal thriller." I'm a lizard that writes books! I win!

Library Journal has posted a review of Late Eclipses, and says, "Vibrant writing and a likable narrator make this one of the stronger entries in the urban fantasy genre. It should appeal to fans of Jim Butcher's 'Dresden Files.'" Cool. Now can you help me get Jim's sales numbers...? 'Cause that would be keen.

Obligatory LJ review! janicu has posted a review of Late Eclipses, and says, "If you are an urban fantasy fan, you should read this, but don't stop at the first book, because the overarching storyline builds up as the books go along. It is rewarding to keep reading the series—if I think over what was revealed in this book, I become positively gleeful." Also, "To me, this series just gets better and better, and this is the best installment yet." Yay!

Scooper Speaks has posted a review of Late Eclipses, and says, "Seanan McGuire's October Daye series is the bom-diggity-dog." Yeah...the review's good too, but I'm gonna stop there, because that is awesome.

Finally for today, Julia at All Things Urban Fantasy has posted a review of Late Eclipses, and says, "Overall, Seanan McGuire has done a stellar job of developing her characters while interweaving action and suspense. As much as I enjoyed the romantic tension in Late Eclipses, it was the details about Toby's family, both blood relation and adopted, that truly touched me. The story as a whole has me on the edge of my seat for One Salt Sea in September, I am eager to find out how all this will play out." So am I!

So that's all for today; I'm going to post a few more review roundups soon, just in an attempt to take back my notes file. Between this and the convention ribbon order, let's just say that it's a mess in there...

Reviews!

Since Late Eclipses [Amazon]|[Mysterious Galaxy] comes out, you know, tomorrow, I figured it was probably time for a review roundup. Let's see what people are saying, shall we?

Diana at Fresh Fiction reviewed Late Eclipses, and says, "The October Daye series is gritty and glittering urban fantasy at its best and Late Eclipses is no exception." Short, sweet, and to the point. I like it!

Leslee at Night Owl Reviews made Late Eclipses a Top Pick! She says, "Every time I finish a book in this series, I think 'Oh, that was the best one! It can't get any better than that!' and then I get the next book. Ms. McGuire continues to improve on perfection with each volume." I think I may frame that quote and put it above my bed.

Tori the Book Faery reviewed Late Eclipses, and says, "Unlike past books, Late Eclipses has the perfect balance of action and investigating, and thus, was a book I was unable to put down." Rock and roll!

GlamKitty at The Literate Kitty (owner of a lovely bluepoint Himalayan) posted her review of Late Eclipses, and says, "Late Eclipses is chock-full of everything I can’t get enough of in this series." Also, "Bottom line? I am beyond thrilled with this latest entry in what is, hands down, my absolute favorite urban fantasy series." Glee!

Finally (for now), Rachel at Geek Speak Magazine has posted her review of Late Eclipses, and says, "Madness abounds, especially among those enemies, and Toby is caught up in a morass of political machination and unjustified vendetta that makes for a fast-paced, breathless, and ultimately very satisfying read."

That works for me.

Here's to tomorrow, to good reviews, to successful releases, and to me getting more caffeine before I'm forced to rampage. Happy Monday!

Zombiesque [Amazon]|[Mysterious Galaxy] has been out for a few weeks now (although my anthology-loving heart still leaps every time I see a copy, even if it's on my desk), and a few reviews have poked their happy little heads up.

Lexile reviewed Zombiesque for Night Owl Reviews, and says, "Zombiesque is a better than average anthology." Yay! But what does she think of the Pumpkins? "The funniest story was Seanan McGuire's 'Gimme a "Z"!' about a cheerleader who recently died and is resurrected. She doesn't see any reason why even though she's dead she can't, you know, wash her hair or go out to get a soda or like be a cheerleader. The story is really ridiculous and what ultimately keeps her from being one of the shambling, flesh eating dead is just short of absurd, but it's immensely entertaining."

Oh, yeah. Fighting Pumpkins rule.

Kelly at Daemon's Books gave Zombiesque five stars, and says, "Personally, the zombie cheerleader story called 'Gimme a "Z"!' was my favorite." What more need be said? Oh, how about, "The writing was fantastic, Seanan McGuire’s take on the way that teenagers (well, stereotypical cheerleader teenagers) talk was perfect." See? All that snark is good for something!

Finally, the Zombiesque review at Errant Dreams calls out each individual story on its merits and failings, and gives a fantastic general overview of the anthology.

Everyone seems to be in agreement: this is a fun book with good stories, and you should check it out. Plus, it marks the first in-print appearance of the Fighting Pumpkins cheer squad (their prior appearance, "Dying With Her Cheer Pants On," was virtual). Show school spirit! Support the team!

GO PUMPKINS!

They hold my trial in absentia; an empty gesture intended only to placate the screaming public. The growing silence outside the courthouse walls only serves to illustrate the pointlessness of the proceedings. It takes three days to present the evidence: the charts, the lab results, the videos. It would take longer, but after the fourth prosecutor fails to return from recess, the court decides to pass judgment on the case as it stands. There is enough—more than enough—to convict.

—from "The Tolling of Pavlov's Bells," available to read now at Apex Magazine.

The January issue of Apex is now available for all to read! (Prior to this, you had to actually buy the issue. A worthy investment. Seriously.) And in the spirit of this availability, have a few reviews of my story:

Carl at The Portal says "Alternating between moments before and after the key event in her story, McGuire tells a tale of biological terrorism and cold, calculating vengeance that is frightening in its reality." Also: "'The Tolling of Pavlov's Bells' brought to mind films like 28 Days Later and the various incarnations of Resident Evil, stripped of all their implausibilities so that all that remains is the sheer horror of a very real threat to mankind." Dude. I win at creepy.

Terry at Fantasy Literature says, "Those who have read Seanan McGuire’s tasty urban fantasies starring October Daye will be surprised at the dark science fiction she serves up in 'The Tolling of Pavlov’s Bells.'" That was the goal! She goes on to say that she didn't realize I was Mira Grant, and will now be reading Feed.

If you haven't heard the bells, this is your chance.

You've been warned.

Publishers Weekly has spoken on the subject of Late Eclipses, and they say:

"In October 'Toby' Daye's fourth outing, following 2010's An Artificial Night, the half-Fae private detective is once again run through the wringer when problems plaguing the San Francisco Fae community strike home on a personal level. First, in an unprecedented, unexpected move, the Queen of the Mists promotes Toby to countess. Given that the Queen hates her, it's quite obviously a trap, but not something Toby can refuse or avoid. Subsequently, several of Toby's closest friends are struck down through poison and illness, and she's accused of murder. Has an enemy from Toby's past resurfaced, or is she losing her mind? Physically, emotionally, and magically drained, faced with tragedy and despair, Toby's forced to deal with the long-hidden truth behind her Fae heritage. In this tightly plotted adventure, McGuire mixes nonstop action with a wealth of mythology to deliver a wholly satisfying story."

They like me! They really like me!

Pardon me while I dance THE DANCE OF JOY.

Blah blah links, blah blah drowning, blah blah I wanna go watch iCarly with the cats. So here is your super-rapid-fire review roundup, mostly Feed, some others.

On the Brink of Insanity has posted a Feed review, and says, "The science level explanations for the virus is amazingly well done. Grant made the possibility of a viral outbreak that actually creates zombies seem very real. I also really enjoyed the details given about the character's living conditions and the new technology and how one goes about surviving in a nation filled with zombies and what freedoms people are willing to give up to stay alive."

Dawn of the Lead has also reviewed Feed, and says, "For me, World War Z has always—since I read it, that is—been THE zombie novel. That position is now heavily contested by Mira Grant's Feed, the first part of her Newsflesh trilogy." Dude, win.

Post Whatever has posted a Feed review, and says, "Feed bucked my vision of what a zombie story would be. Sure, there were gory undead running around, along with super-charged security to help keep the living alive, but I didn’t expect to find a political campaign and an engaging conspiracy theory inside this book, regardless of what the cover blurb said."

Remember Sparrow Hill Road? Well, Rise Reviews has reviewed the last issue of The Edge of Propinquity to feature our darling Rose, and says, "'Thunder Road' of Seanan McGuire's Sparrow Hill Road series is far and away the best piece in this issue of TEOP. And for anyone who enjoys darkly all-American fare, this series is very satisfying to read." All of Sparrow Hill is available to read for free, in the archives!

Here's something you haven't seen in a while: a review of A Local Habitation, posted by Lesley W.'s Book Nook. Lesley says, "I loved this. Not quite as much as the first in the series, but it's definitely one of my favorite books of the year. October is an imperfect heroine. She makes mistakes, she's obtuse about some things. I think she wants to do the right thing, though, but she knows that that can come with a heavy price." Rock on!

That's about what I have time for right now. I'm going to go feed the cats.

The trouble with having little spiders that wander around the Internet looking for reviews is that I wind up with a lot of reviews. And once I have them, I want to post them, because that is how my brain is wired. And then? Then I drown in a sea of links.

Travels Through Iest has chosen Feed as a favorite read of 2010. To quote, "Feed is a zombie apocalypse novel mixed with political thriller. It sounds insane and it kind of is, but it's well written, cleverly realised with a remarkably believable future world." Go team insanity!

Oh, hey, and the Word Zombie also chose Feed as a favorite read of 2010. To quote, "This is that rare combination of a great story, that also happens to be a great zombie story." Hooray!

Vampires and Tofu (another great blog name!) has posted a review of Feed, and says, "Feed is a wonderful story of zombies, social commentary, politics, religion and the struggle to hold onto the ideals of a nation. It is intelligent and heartbreaking and don't be surprised if you find yourself shedding a tear when you read it." This works for me.

To give you an idea of how long it's taking me to clear the link lists these days, here's a Halloween plug for Feed from Pretty In Dayton, who says, "Primarily, this was just a fun read. But it is the first book that I have read that centered on zombies that made me cry. Yes I'm a sap, but I don't usually cry when reading books. I enjoyed the characters very much. And you know, since it's a zombie book, people die. Apparently this book is to be a series (Newsflesh). I can't wait to read what comes next!" And I can't wait for you to read it.

And here's an SFReader Forum review of Feed, which says, "I'd strongly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys zombies, political thrillers, or anything along those lines from the fiction section. It reminds me most strongly of Stephen King's novels, although it is not a rip-off of any of Stephen King's books."

Any review roundup that ends with a Stephen King comparison is a good review roundup from my perspective. Later!

The "Best of 2010" lists have continued to come in, and I'm totally amazed and delighted to find that I keep appearing on them. Who'd have thought, right? First, the big one:

FEED won the 2010 Goodreads Choice Award for Best Science Fiction Book!

Oh my sweet pumpkin and pie, you guys, I won! I mean...holy cats!!! This is totally exciting, and totally amazing, and I am so overjoyed. I'm going to see about getting some new wallpapers up, to celebrate.

Moving on to the next item on my list, I actually wrote two of Bookbanter's top fifteen books of 2010, with Feed coming in at #1, and An Artificial Night coming in at #9. Where's the love? There's the love. Oooooh, yeah.

Oh, and also? Both Feed and An Artificial Night appear in the 2010 Powell's Books Staff Picks, which is pretty much entirely bad-ass and amazing and I am so totally over-the-moon.

Is this a mostly content-free post? Yes, this is, although, you know, lots of squealing and delight on my part. But I am so jet-lagged from my attempts to escape from the snowy wilds of Georgia (not a sentence I have many occasions to use) that this is about all I'm capable of. More actual substance later. For now, please accept this sizzle in place of steak.

At least it's pretty sizzle, right? So pretty...

Best of!

So people are stating to post their "best of..." lists for 2010. Heck, I'm even doing it, and I'm frequently the last person to notice that the bandwagon is rolling through the center of my town. Much to my surprise and delight, Feed is showing up on a few of those lists, which is sort of like, whoa, really? I mean...whoa, really? I love this book like I love sunshine and zombie puppies, but I didn't write it to make lists, I wrote it to get it out of my head. So the fact that it is is just...

It's staggering.

But here it is on Book Yurt's 2010 W00t List, described as "smart, scary, sassy and not at all what you'd expect from a zombie novel." (I'm also described here, as "both hilarious and ferociously smart." I can roll with that, being an overly-intellectual former stand-up comic. See? Every skill applies somewhere.)

And the Devourer of Books listed Feed as one of the books she gushed about in 2010, describing it as, "a smart book with fantastic world building." She was talking about the audio book, too, and gave kudos to the narrators.

But the one that really floored me—I mean floored me, knocked me on my ass and stole my lunch money—is the one that half the world emailed me about while I was sleeping. Because Feed, my little zombies-and-politics Sorkin/Romero love letter, Feed...

Well, it made The Onion AV Club's list of the Best Books They Read in 2010. Feed. My book. Made that list. HOLY CRAP. And they say:

"Feed resembles a Cory Doctorow novel in its intelligent speculation about how technology will reshape familiar aspects of the world, but it's more like The West Wing in its close observation of a presidential campaign from the inside, as seen through the eyes of a handful of bloggers invited along on the campaign trail. It's a breathless, exciting pulp novel with one of 2010's most surprising endings, but it's also a smart futuristic extrapolation about what the future may look like thanks to the Internet and new modes of communication, zombies or no."

I am stunned. Totally stunned. And also, have no lunch money, because this review took it. And somehow, I do not mind.

BEST OF 2010, BABY! WOOOOOOOOO!

The links are beginning to haunt my dreams. So here: let's get a few of them out of the way.

First up, Tim Pratt's fabulous Locus review has been posted online, and says, "While there's plenty of zombie mayhem, political snark, and pointedly funny observations here, the heart of this book is about human relationships, which are still the most important thing in the world...even in a world where you might have to shoot the person you love most in the head, just to stop them from biting off your face. While Feed is the first volume of the Newsflesh trilogy, it stands alone perfectly well—but if you like smart zombie action with a heart, you’ll be eager for the sequel, Deadline." Locus Magazine: where the awesome is.

KT Grant has posted her review of Feed, including some very sweet commentary on having met me at New York City Comicon. She says, "Mira's world building in Feed is bar none, one of the best I've ever read." Also, "The best possible compliment I can give this book and the writing talents of Mira Grant, is that if Edward R, Murrow, one of the greatest American broadcast journalists was still alive, he would embrace Feed for its message. George Romero, the godfather of the zombie apocalypse, would stand up and cheer. Feed is, hands down, one of the best zombie stories I’ve ever read, behind George Matheson's I Am Legend."

This is where I pause a moment (something I rarely do in these review roundups) and note that this, right here, is why I am Mira Grant. KT is a lovely person, with taste in books that does not, unfortunately, include my Toby series. She really, really disliked Rosemary and Rue, and has not, so far as I know, read the sequels. She was going to pass on Feed solely because she knew it was me. Reviews changed her mind. But for all those people who picked up Feed not knowing it was me, and not liking my work under my own name...this is why I'm Mira Grant. Because they are so different.

Carrying on...

Vampifan has posted a great review of Feed, and says, "This is a novel that can be read as a political thriller with zombies, which is how I described it to my parents. They both read it and both enjoyed it as much as me, which is high praise as neither of them has ever read a zombie novel before." I have crossover appeal!

karenhealey (best name ever) has posted her spoiler-tagged Feed review, and it's hysterical. Seriously, if you've read Feed, click through.

Persephone Magazine has posted a lovely critical review of Feed (and has some harsh things to say about the book's print quality). No good pull quotes this time, but give it a read; it's quite solid.

That's all for now. I will triumph over this link list! Maybe...

I'm three months out from the next Toby Daye book hitting shelves, and that means I have the opportunity to clean out my link list a little bit before I am once again smothered by reviews. FOR GREAT JUSTICE! So here's a nice mixed-bag of commentary, provided for your delight and edification. And, you know. Stuff.

Amanda at Diary of a Book Addict has posted her review of An Artificial Night, and says, "With characters that are just as fascinating as the plot and the world, An Artificial Night is so mesmerizing that you'll desperately be looking for the next installment as soon as you finish the last page." I love you, too!

KB did a guest post at the Book Smugglers, listing her favorite reads of 2010, and Feed made the cut! Quoth KB, "If Edward R, Murrow, one of the greatest American broadcast journalist was still alive, he would embrace Feed for its message. George Romero, the godfather of the zombie apocalypse, would stand up and cheer. Possibly one of the best zombie stories I’ve ever read, behind George Matheson's I Am Legend." Wow. That's...wow.

Kristin at Aspiring Author has posted her review of Feed, and says, "This book is smart and will appeal to lovers of the zombie genre as well as those who don't like the gore. It's well-written and well-executed, and it will be interesting to see how the story progresses through the rest of the trilogy. Recommended." Yay!

LJ review time! christina_reads has posted her review of A Local Habitation, and says, "I'm really impressed with the complex world of this series—I get the impression that McGuire has really thought things through—but it sometimes seems a little overcrowded." A fair cop.

Tansy Rayner Roberts has posted a long and thoughtful review of Feed, calling it "a hard-edged SF political thriller which deals with the future of communications and the media, and happens to have zombies in it," and saying, "Georgia is an extraordinary protagonist." Hooray! She also has some fair issues with the portrayal of Congresswoman Wagman, and some very interesting thoughts about the book as a whole. Give it a read.

Travels Through Iest has posted a nice review of Feed, and says, "I found myself getting wound up in the story and the lives of the participants. The dialogue is snappy and funny, the action well described and at times I found myself genuinely sad for what was happening in the story. Feed is a tight, well told tale full of zombie goodness and plenty of pop culture references. It's been given a number of accolades and totally deserves them all."

That seems like a good place to stop for right now, don't you think? More to come!

It's a Sunday afternoon and I'm too sick to think, with one of those headaches that makes it feel like my brains are going to run out my ears and causes every medical website on the Internet to say that I have brain parasites or something. OH JOY. So here are ten reviews, very quickly, and I'm going back to bed.

Grapeshot Magazine says, "Feed, I have to say, is a book for the geeks. Those who are into blogging (both posting and reading), enjoyed reading Pride and Prejudice and Zombies or are horror junkies, should definitely put Feed on their must-read list."

Shroud Magazine Book Reviews says, "...she has written what is, in my humble opinion, the best zombie novel since the one by that Brooks fella."

The Unfanboy says, "While Grant is far from the first author to use epidemiological mayhem as the basis for a zombie story, her premise is just original enough to lead to some new implications that keep this one fresh."

Crackin' Spines and Takin' Names says, "For me, this book had everything! I laughed, I cried, I threw up in my mouth a little bit, I cried some more...It was the closest thing to a perfect zombie book and I truly cannot wait to read the next installment of the Newsflesh series."

Coffeespoons says, "You can read it as a zombie book or a commentary on new media. Either way, Feed is a powerful book, and anyone who's read through till the end will understand why."

BookGirl's Book Nook says, "I loved this book, even if it did scare the shit out of me."

Bite Club says, "Feed is an interesting, clever, and engrossing book that kept me reading to the very end."

Poisoned Rationality says, "Grant is as sneaky as Joss Whedon with her foreshadowing."

Good Books and Good Wine says, "The ending blew me away and I definitely choked up a little bit while driving."

Finally for now, SFReader says, "Feed is a post apocalyptic zombie novel, and it's a damn good one."

...and that's about what I can handle just at the moment. I'm going to go be horizontal before there is cookie-tossing. Someone come over here and kill my headache with a chainsaw, will you?

I have just finished watching the fourth episode of Tower Prep, thanks to an awesome unexpected screener from the doubly-awesome folks at Cartoon Network. For those who missed my last enthusiastic blog post, Tower Prep is Cartoon Network's second live-action mystery drama, following the kick-ass Unnatural History. It was created by Paul Dini, and is a true delight. Every week intensifies and expands the central mysteries, without losing sight of the core premise:

What is Tower Prep? How did we get here? And how in the hell are we going to get out?!

Episode four, "Buffer," is flat-out awesome in all the right ways. It's definitely Ian and CJ-centric, but Suki and Gabe are both given plenty of room to show off and shine. Once again, the show neatly dodges gender stereotyping—all the characters are given things to do that make sense for them, not for "generic hero-type" or "generic love-interest/heroine." It's incredibly rare to find a show that does this at all, much less one that's ostensibly aimed at teens.

With "Buffer," the mystery surrounding the Gnomes—Tower Prep's mysterious security force—deepens, and we finally get to see more of the Buffer Team, those sporty guys who harassed Ian back in episode one. If I have any complaints about the episode, it's that they didn't have time to spend, you know, a week teaching the rest of us the rules of Buffer. That sport looks wild.

Tower Prep is just getting more awesome with every week that passes, and I can't encourage you enough to hop on while it's still early enough in the ride for you to come with us to the end. Seriously, I don't think I've been this passionately in love with a show from day one since Supernatural.

The mystery continues!

First up, calico_reaction has selected Feed as her October book club selection, and is currently moderating a vigorous discussion of the book. She does good, critical review, and you should check her out.

Second up, I'm linking to this in part because other people keep pointing it out to me, often with a "hey hey you should go participate in the discussion" rider. So I wanted to take a moment to explain why I'll read reviews*, but won't read or participate in book discussions.

Having an author join a discussion of their own book often has the unintentional effect of both censoring and stilling the dialog. Which is not to say that people won't happily say "you suck" when they know I'll see it...but people who think that's fun aren't usually the sort of people who really want to do critical analysis, and people who really want to do critical analysis sometimes get uncomfortable critically analyzing someone who's standing right there. This goes double for readers who are also friends of mine. It's way harder to be harsh on a book, or critical of a plot point, when you're worried about hurting the feelings of a friend.

Plus, anything I say about what I meant—not how the text was interpreted—sort of sounds like holy writ. "No, no, you have that wrong..." is not something you want to hear from an author during a book discussion. Ever. It can be really easy for an author to come off as a condescending brat when they chime in on this sort of thing.

Lastly...the "book as child" comparison doesn't stand up for me, most of the time. My books don't need to be fed, don't get the stomach flu, and don't wake me up at two in the morning to look for monsters in their closets. But there are times when the comparison holds. Imagine putting a small child in a room with two-way mirrors all the way around it, like a zoo enclosure. The child doesn't know you're out there, which is good, because you and your friends have gathered to rip that child apart.

She's funny looking. His clothes don't fit. She has too many freckles. His toes are weird. She's not smart enough. He's not cute enough. She's too tall. He's too short. She doesn't play with her dolls the way you think she should. He keeps sticking Lego pieces in his mouth. And so on, and so on, until every possible flaw, real or perceived, has been picked apart in detail. Someone will opine that the child should never have been born. Someone else will opine that the world would be better if the child had been taken behind a barn and shot.

Now imagine that the child's mother is standing right there, listening to every word you say, but unable to defend her child from you in any useful way—in fact, attempting to defend the child will just result in her being attacked as a bad mother on top of everything else.

And this is what it's like to be an author at a book discussion, even a good, civilized, totally bitchin' one like calico_reaction's tend to be. Which is why I don't read or participate in them.

Now you know. And knowing is half the battle! The other half involves airborne rabies hybrids and a hand-held mister.

(*That aren't posted on Goodreads or Amazon.)

Hello, boys and ghouls, as the great Elvira once said. The time has come for another review roundup, this one celebrating the most wonderful time of the year: Halloween. And that means, surprise, surprise, that we'll be focusing on my more undead works.

First up, there's a lengthy, fantastic video review of Feed up at the New Jedi Order. Now, as a warning, this is a thirty-minute review: it's literally a Halloween special's-worth of zombie goodness. There's swearing and adult content, and it's huge fun, and I get compared to Stephen King. I am a happy girl.

There's also a kick-ass review of Feed on the blog "I Smell Blood and an Era of Prominent Madman," a name which I now want to see on a business card. The reviewer says, "Feed by Mira Grant AKA Seanan McGuire, (you'll never see them in the same room together) is the first book in the Newsflesh trilogy to which all I can say is: Get cracking woman I want the rest of the story." Working on it!

The Paperback Dolls are celebrating Zombie Week, and have posted a fantastic Feed review as part of the party. They say, "Feed resonates because it is a call to open your eyes and really see the problems of the world around you. See them, act on them, hold our leaders responsible for making progress on the grave issues facing us. Whether the problem is an out-of-control zombie virus, global warming, a limp economy, or dangerous enemies wielding the weapons of hate and terror, the call is the same. Take ownership of these problems, and shine a light into all dark corners." Also, "Rise up and read this book, too. If you like zombies, read it. If you like political thrillers, read it. If you are more than a bump on a log, read it. It's worth it." Win!

The Feed review at My Friend Amy's Blog (actual blog title) says, "It is not in any way a romance. There are zombies. There is death. The dead rise again...but only to eat your brains. There's a lot of action and a lot of mystery. And the biggest compliment I can pay it is that when I wasn't reading it, I was wishing I was reading it." That's a damn big compliment, frankly.

Finally for this batch, another video review of Feed, this one by MoonstarElf, who is peppy and fun, and got the book from her mother, which is totally a chain of transmission that I approve of. YAY VIDEO BLOG REVIEWS!

I am a happy blonde, and I hope you have a happy Halloween!

You know the drill: the links are winning, and it's time to smack them down again. I'm trying to keep these posts to a minimum, and I thank you all for your patience. I'll provide koala pictures soon, as penance.

First up, there's a really fun interview with Mira Grant on the Realm Cast, including some questions that aren't part of the "every time, they ask me" list. In fact, some of these questions were totally new. Reward ingenuity! It's fun!

Necroscope is the official zombie fiction review blog of Horrorscope (which says something terrifying about the scope of zombie fiction), and has posted a review of Feed, saying "Feed is a page-turner of the highest order, which hits the reader (emotionally speaking) like a ton of bricks when their defenses are down. A must-read for all fans of horror, SF, and anything in-between." Okay, Chuck at Necroscope, I officially adore you.

Oh, what the hell, have another Feed review, this one from Lordazen's blog. He says, "Mira Grant's first release in the Newsflesh trilogy is a roller coaster ride of action and emotion. She has captured the Zombie apocalypse in its most raw format and dishes it out on discs of pure saw blade lethality. An excellent beginning to what promises to be a thrill ride of a series." Fantastic!

Sick Damage has posted a review of Feed, complete with a first for me in book reviews: a picture of Conan the Barbarian. Well, okay. Anyway, their reviewer says, "The book is really really good. There are a lot of twists and turns and plenty of action to keep you going. It’s also one of the more original zombie novels I've read in a while." Thank you, Conan!

Finally for this batch, since I try to stop at five, Beyond Scary has posted a review of Feed, and says, "I had a lot of fun with this book, which is just as well as it runs to a lurching 560 odd pages of mayhem, and was generally surprised at just how well written it was. Okay the whole media thing isn't a Down Under perspective but I could get with the program there and go with the flow. I have seen the future of the zombie novel folks, and am now simply dying to get my hands on the next novel. Wonder if Mira Grant has thought about a sequel or another novel set in her undead world?" You have no idea how much this review makes me want to set a Newsflesh-universe book set in Australia. ZOMBIE KANGAROOS FOR EVERYBODY!

And that's a wrap. For now.

I'll have better things later today (and things which include slightly more in the way of "actual coherence"), but I was out late last night, and a nice big pot of link soup is currently about my speed. Yum, yum, link soup. Anyway...

SFX Magazine conducted this fun interview with me in my guise as Mira Grant with me at this year's San Diego International Comic Con, which means they transcribed my actual speech, thus leading to a lot of exclamation points. They had some fun new questions. I heartily approve.

And while we're in the Mira part of the library, Fantasy Magazine posted this excellent review of Feed. It's a fun read, even if it doesn't provide any good pull quotes for me to share with the rest of the class.

Pseudo Emo Teen posted a lovely review of Feed, and says, "Let me start out by saying: Feed is one of the best, if not the best, book I have read in long time." Okay, you know, that works for me. Let's just go with that.

Sometimes it's nice to get interviewed in my guise as, you know, me. So here's a fun interview that was conducted before my trip to Australia, during which I talk about the Campbell and the destruction of mankind. You know, the usual jibber-jabber around these parts. (The lovely lady who interviewed me posted her review of Feed after I won the Campbell, and you should read that, too.)

And now for something completely different...a review of Grants Pass, the first anthology I ever actually sold a story to. They call out my story, which makes this relevant. Also, it's a bad-ass anthology, and if you like horror, you should totally read it.

I forgot to share the most positive review from Publisher's Weekly yet received by a Toby Daye book:

"McGuire hits her stride with this fast-paced, sharply plotted, tense urban fantasy, the third featuring half-fae detective Toby Daye (after 2009's A Local Habitation). Toby is dismayed to encounter her frighteningly upbeat Fetch, May Daye, a magical doppelganger heralding her imminent demise. Hot on its heels comes the discovery that Blind Michael, lord of the Wild Hunt, has kidnapped a number of fae and human children—including several whom Toby considers family—to replenish his riders. Determined to outfight or outwit Michael, Toby chases him down several increasingly dangerous Faerie Roads and through the streets of San Francisco, finding unexpected allies and new inner strength. McGuire adeptly plunders folklore, nursery rhymes, traditional ballads, and fairy tales for her framework, and fleshes it out with plenty of action and intrigue. With the addition of May, the cast finally clicks and the series really solidifies." —PW

What do I take away from this? Well, a) May is totally awesome, b) it is possible for me to get a positive review that doesn't mention Tybalt (although Tybalt disagrees with this position), and c) I am totally a folklore pirate. Ahoy, mateys! Slow down your fairy tale and prepare to be boarded!

In other news, An Artificial Night was the top-selling mass-market paperback at Borderlands Books last month. That? Rules. (Also, Feed was number ten. If I can get a third book onto the list at the same time, I get to shout BINGO! really loud.)

Life is good.

You know the drill by now.

First up, a relatively rare pitch for people to pick up my CDs. I'm posting this largely because Wicked Girls is still in pre-order (through my website), and Stars Fall Home is on the verge of going entirely out of print. Seriously. Not joking. So you may want to consider picking these up soon, if you were ever going to.

A review of Rosemary and Rue is up at Genre Reviews, and reads, "I'm sure I'm not really conveying here how awesome I find this series, but discovering what happens next fills me with anticipatory need." Spiffy!

hanabishirecca has posted a lovely LJ review of An Artificial Night, and says, "An Artificial Night provided for me everything I want in a novel. The characters are rock solid. The plot is phenomenal. I even found myself cheering with glee one moment and nearly weeping another. This book was overall superb and is a must read for anyone that finds at least a remote interest in Urban Fantasy." DUDE. That's a win.

Oh, hey, I did a guest post for Marianne de Pierres about writing and being Mira Grant and lots of other fun stuff. You should check it out.

Finally for this grab-bag of things I needed out of my link soup, Fantastique Foibles and Fables has posted a lovely review of Feed (which was given an A+!). There are no real pull quotes, but you should definitely take a look.

So my recent radio silence has been largely the result of the New York Comic Convention, where I have paneled many panels, signed many signatures, shopped much shopping, and slept many sleeps. Honestly, I should probably sleep a few more sleeps, and that's why you're getting a link roundup now. Because I am lazy, and my inbox is exploding.

Rena has posted a lovely review of A Local Habitation, and says that, "There are some interesting twists and turns, and a lot of action—this book was less about solving the mystery than it was about advancing other aspects of the plot of the series, with some very discreet info dumping." Cool.

Wayward Drui has posted a review of An Artificial Night, and says, "This is the most solid book to come out of this series yet. And the creepiest. And topping A Local Habitation for chill factor was quite the feat in of itself." I'm creepy! Yay!

Dave at Dave Does the Blog (love that name) has reviewed Feed, and says, "This is ostensibly the first of a series. I’ve rarely read such that didn’t scream for a sequel, but this story works perfectly well stand-alone novel. A really fun, really readable, really engrossing book. Very highly recommended." He's ambivalent about the idea of a sequel, but I'm not.

A fabulous review of An Artificial Night has been posted at From the Shadows, and says, "I highly recommend An Artificial Night to readers of urban fantasy, paranormal suspense, fantasy, and especially to fans of the Rachel Morgan books by Kim Harrison and The Dresden Files series by Jim Butcher." Yay!

Finally for this batch of THE LINKS THE LINKS OH GOD THE LINKS, Janicu has posted a review of An Artificial Night, and says, "What an awesome series this is. Every time I read one, it manages to make me feel a jittery need to read the next one. Luckily, McGuire seems to be a prolific writer and so far we’ve seen two Toby Daye installments a year." ...prolific, I can do.

Anyway, that kills the current batch of links, for which I am very grateful, as it means I can go back to posting the unending archival links (and thus, someday, potentially, end them). I am still in New York, I am still largely away from the keyboard, and I am still dying for a Diet Dr Pepper.

IGNITE THE BIOSPHERE!

I'm starting to have nightmares about my link list. Anyway...

The Horror Fiction Review has published a review of Feed, and says, "At the risk of seeming disloyal to some of my idols, mentors and all-around awesome cool guys like Brian Keene and Dr. Kim Paffenroth, I am going to go ahead and come right out and say it...Mira Grant's Feed just might be the best damn zombie book I’ve ever read." Well, that's hard to beat, really.

Brutal As Hell has also posted a Feed review, now with bonus profanity (yay!), and says, "Feed is hands-down one of the best zombie novels to be published in a long time, which is saying something extremely special given the volume of zombie literature being published right now. Grant weaves a plot with a substantial amount of twists and turns, never losing the quality of writing, and she is certainly not afraid to go to places most authors wouldn’t even consider. I've read some great books this year, but nothing has left me with such a sense of excitement for future installments or for zombie literature as a whole like Feed has. Mira Grant has certainly captured my attention in a way that no other author, particularly a new author, ever has. Run to your nearest bookstore to get this book immediately. Bring a machete if it makes you feel more comfortable." Dude.

Cookies, Books, and Bikes has posted a Feed review, and says, "I loved this book! I was captured by the story from the first couple of pages and couldn't stop reading until it was done. The action just dragged me right in and kept me reading. The story had enough action interspersed with more mild events keep me reading and waiting for the next big event." That's all I can ask for, really.

Here, let's break things up a little with a new interview of Mira, conducted by the lovely crew at Fanatic Space. With some new questions and some new answers, it was a really good time, and you should totally give it a look.

Finally, for right now, Girl On Book Action (this is my new Journey cover band name) has posted a fabulous Feed review. Her review is long, detailed, and doesn't offer many pull quotes...although she does criticize the number of typos in the book. Oh, well, can't win 'em all.

That's it for today; look for another roundup coming soon, as I struggle to reclaim my link file.

So I'm still trying to dig my way out from under the review links that built up in the time leading to and including my trip to Australia. Thank you for being understanding; I'll be through them pretty soon, if I continue at my current pace, and shall reward you soon with kitty pictures. Anyway...

The Devourer of Books has posted a review of the audio edition of Feed, and says, "Honestly, Feed was everything I had hoped that The Passage would be but it wasn't." You know, that really works for me. It's a good review, and she definitely liked the audio edition.

2xKnight at Fanatic Space has posted a review of Feed, and says, "I highly recommend this book." Also, "Feed combines some wildly different subject matter in a way that is both natural and riveting. Not only does Mira Grant come up with a novel approach to zombification, giving her zombies a very interesting background, but she also makes the people living in that world just as much fun to read about." Win!

Grumpy Dan has posted his review of Feed, and says, "One of the better zombie stories I have read. I can't wait for the next book in this series." Rock on.

Word Nerd has posted an excellent review of Feed. It's structured in a way that doesn't lend itself well to pull quotes, unfortunately, but you should still take a look, as it's lovely.

Finally for today, Sommer Leigh has posted her review of Feed, brilliantly titled "President Bartlett Hates Zombies Too." She says, "Feed is like a cross between Dawn of the Dead, Hackers, and The West Wing. You think I’m joking, but I'm not." Goodnight, everybody!

More to come, later on.

Yes, again. Australia let my links get all out of control, and I'm just now starting to beat them back down to a manageable level. It's like wordy kudzu!

The Fantasy Cafe has posted a review of Feed, and says, "Even though I usually would treat a zombie book like zombies themselves and run the other way, I'm glad I read this one." Works for me.

Oh, hey! I did an interview with the Word Zombie to go with their Feed review. Give it a look, it's fun. Plus? Actual photo representations of my dream casting. Swoon.

My darling catvalente posted a long, thoughtful review of Feed, complete with MAINE COON MADNESS, and says, "The plot? Bloggers are hired to follow the Republican candidate for president some 40 years after the zombie apocalypse. A full society is in swing that knows how to deal with zombies but is still plagued by them. It's fascinating stuff. There is a conspiracy. Things bite other things. There are, I shit you not, both zombie palominos and zombie moose. This is unassailably awesome." Hee.

Beth at Flying Off the Shelves posted a lovely review of Feed, and says, "When I first started reading this book I wasn't expecting it to be nearly as good as it is. I questioned it and asked myself, 'How could this book be any good after reading World War Z? I don't want to read another crappy zombie book,' but I took the chance and I found that this book is truly an amazing piece of writing. The characters are dynamic and complex. The story line will knock your socks off. I actually don't have anything bad to say about this book whatsoever. Even the science behind this story is interesting and spot on when it comes to basic virus information. If her next book is anything like this I may just die (and hopefully not zombify)." Yay!

Finally for today, my old friend Mike Jones reviewed Feed for SF Site, and says, "Combining zombies, politics, epidemiology, pop culture, blogging, humor and horror, this is one hell of a series opener. Grant (the open pseudonym for urban fantasist/artist/songwriter Seanan McGuire) knocks the ball out of the park with Feed." Works for me.

Rise up while you can.

The fun never stops!

Ragnarfan has posted a review of Feed, and says, "Feed is a proper thriller with zombies. Grant doesn't get carried away with describing her world or the virus. She's clearly thought both out brilliantly, but she doesn't let it get in the way of a taut, well-written story." Hooray, proper thrillers!

The Word Zombie (still love that blog name) also posted a Feed review, and says, "I enjoyed this book far more than I had anticipated. It's that rare combination of a great story that also happens to be a great zombie story. I really found myself invested in the characters and was emotionally affected by the ending in a manner that happens far too infrequently for me these days. For that, I have to thank Mira Grant—job well done." Yay! You're welcome!

This detailed Feed review has been posted at Ravenous Bookshelf, the blog of a library school student, and says, "If I wanted to be really analytical, I could talk about the parallels of zombie virology (Grant has crafted a fascinating model of infection) and the 'viral' spread of information among people with the blogging universe, crowdsourcing and communications advancements...but mostly? Georgia + Shaun = Love." Awwww. I agree.

Bea Connors posted this review on the Falcata Times, and says, "Grant takes a while to establish her world and is occasionally stingy about revealing information but overall, the book is a solid, fascinating read, well worth the reader's patience. It's an intriguing mix of science fiction, sociology, current events, action, horror and politics. One note: hardcore zombie fans may wish there were more zombie appearances but it was just right for me." Awesome.

Finally for right now, SFRevu has posted a kick-ass Feed review, and says, "Overall I thought the idea was very well done and executed and I'll be looking forward to seeing what Grant does with the second book in the series." Works for me.

That's all for right now. More, as always, to come.

When will you rise?

Yeah, I'm Skippy McPosts-a-lot today, aren't I? Forgive me. It's been a hard Monday.

Anyway, I'm drowning in links, and that means it's time to clear a few of them away. In honor of An Artificial Night (that being my most recent book, and all), it's a Toby-centric day, and we're starting with a review from Renee's Book Addiction, in which she says, "As with book two (A Local Habitation), An Artificial Night not only lived up the the high expectations, but took the series in ever more interesting and complex directions." The rest of the review is lovely, and you should read it. Also, it's technically a review of the audio book, which is super-fun.

Karissa, at Karissa's Reading Review, has reviewed An Artificial Night, and says "This was a great installment in this series. The book was different from the previous books in that most of it takes place in the Summerlands and it is more of a questing/adventure type of story. I loved it." She says a lot more, and very well. I'm pleased.

What's a review roundup without a Livejournal review? Silly, that's what, so here it is. kay_gmd says "I'm not generally an emotional reader, I can definitely be taken away by a story, but this is the first time I remember crying while reading. As a caveat I am pregnant, and I'm told that while pregnant I'm more inclined to such things. (It was late in the book, so I'm not going to tell you where it hit)." Yay! I made...a pregnant woman...cry. Er. Please don't hit me.

Phantastic Student has posted a review, and says, "An Artificial Night took the background from the second book, used it and added to it. It took the toughness, grittiness and heartbreak from the first book and compounded it. It took the best of both books, used it and made it better. It totally kicked ass. McGuire's hit her stride and is going to keep going." Woo! EPIC WIN.

Here: have a second Livejournal review. markbernstein has posted a review of An Artificial Night, and says, "More important, this is the book in which we leave behind Toby, the reluctant private investigator and damaged person, and truly meet October Daye, knight of Shadowed Hills and hero. Here in full display is the moral determination, the unshakable loyalty to family and friends (that has in turn inspired the love and loyalty given her, which is key to the book both plotwise and thematically), and the near-pathological stubbornness that together form the core of Toby's character."

Awesome. And that's all for now. Good night, moon.

We're only inches away from An Artificial Night, and how better to celebrate than with a mixed review roundup? First off, Amanda at Diary of a Book Addict has posted a review of A Local Habitation, and says, "Set up in a somewhat unexpected way, A Local Habitation continues Toby's adventures in an enthralling, amazing and character-driven story that is just as good as the first one. McGuire's writing skills glow and her world is vibrant and engaging. I couldn't put it down until the very end." Hooray!

Meanwhile, SFX in the UK is showing the Feed love. Their reviewer says, "Feed is a proper thriller with zombies. Grant doesn’t get carried away with describing her world or the virus. She’s clearly thought both out brilliantly, but she doesn’t let it get in the way of a taut, well-written story." Glee.

Today's Livejournal review comes from apocalypticbob, who decided she was going to tackle Feed. She says, "I was lucky enough to win a signed ARC of this book, and it was so incredible that I couldn't wrap my head around it well enough to review it. Seanan has the ability to build worlds that suck you in and characters you love even when you aren't sure if you like them." Awwww. I like that.

There's another Feed review up at A Book A Day 'Til I Can Stay, where the reviewer says, "Feed is passionate and incisive writing. Grant is clever and thought-provoking, piggybacking on horror fiction tropes to speak to the audience about how we may be manipulated by the ‘news’, how fear motivates our decisions and how democracy is reduced to a special interest land-grab. At its core though, Feed is a story about a brother and sister who love each other very much. I eagerly await Deadline." That works for me.

Finally for today, sarahtales (Sarah Rees Brennan) has posted her awesome Feed review, and says, "These are not the zombie boyfriends or girlfriends you're looking for. What this is, is the ideal zombie book for nerds." Seriously, just go read the review. It's MADE OF WIN.

...okay, so this was less "mixed" than "four Feed reviews with a Toby on top." Whatever. The ratios will be shifting soon, and I have a link file to clear out!

More to come.

I have come to admit that I will not be clearing my list o' links before I leave for Australia, but that doesn't mean I'm not going to give it the old college try. So here's another batch of Feed reviews, to whet your interest in the book:

N.K. Jemisin included Feed in an awesome book rec post, and says, "This is a thriller. The fact that it takes place during the zombie apocalypse is irrelevant; it could be taking place during an outbreak of weaponized ebola. (Except ebola victims don’t try to eat you.) I count it as science fiction, though, because Grant deals realistically with the evolution of society; the worldbuilding here is fascinating in and of itself. And the characters kept me hooked all the way through, particularly as Grant pulls no punches in showing just how ugly a conspiracy in high places can get. There are some obvious digs at Bush-era politics and the information privacy wars. I can’t wait for the next book." Yay!

Lions and Men posted a lovely review of Feed, and said, "This novel is written in first person perspective and is interlaced with excerpts from the main characters' blogs. This alone is a fresh breath in the horror genre. The way in which Grant writes her characters allows the reader to truly connect with them. You never get the feeling that any of the characters are just placed in the novel to become zombie food; each one has a unique perspective of the world they find themselves in. The dialogue is at times hilarious, and at others, grave." More, it's a review of the audio edition! How cool is that?

To spice things up a little, Lions and Men also interviewed me, which is always a good time. Check it out!

Here's something awesome: a video review of Feed, posted at Through the Eyes of a Journalist. Also, the reviewer wears sunglasses the whole time, which is badass. I am a happy blonde.

Finally, for right now, Feed was reviewed by the Seattle Pi. The reviewer says, "These days I am often intrigued by cover blurbs for novels, but rarely surprised by the words within. Mira Grant's novel Feed starts out innocently enough but morphs into a complex, amazingly intelligent, engaging story that kept me reading late into the night a few nights. This is not your average zombie story and easily in the top three books I've read so far in 2010." Also: "Honestly, if you only read one book about zombies this year, read Mira Grant's Feed." Works for me!

Okay; more to come, as I try to muck out the stable of tabs, but for right now, this batch will have to do. Whee!

Oh, my!

First up, I did another interview with Kenda at Lurv ala Mode, who asked some truly awesome questions, and was, as always, a joy to chat with. Get some hints about Late Eclipses, find out which of Toby's boys I'm 'shipping, and enter to win a copy of any of the first three Toby Daye books. It's fun! And thanks again, Kenda, you rule.

We have some fresh Rosemary and Rue reviews hitting as An Artificial Night approaches. Our first for today is from Fiona and Sara at Inspired Quill, who say, "With a cast of characters that are perhaps not immediately endearing but absolutely real, Seanan McGuire brings the darker side of faerie home to California with Rosemary and Rue. It's very easy to see exactly why this new author has been nominated for a 2010 Campbell Award for Best New Author—Toby's world is a place that Hamilton doesn’t begin to touch, a world where any reader is reminded of the original stories we humans have heard about the fae." Awesome, all around.

Tansy Rayner Roberts has posted a very interesting examination of Rosemary and Rue. She says, "Rosemary and Rue and the rest of the October Daye series may not appeal to the urban fantasy readers who like their sexy magical creatures to be banterific and uncomplicated. Those who appreciate the darker crime novels that are the root of this genre, however, and are looking for a more grown up, hardboiled example of this genre, should definitely check out Rosemary and Rue."

Cookies, Books, and Bikes (love the name) has posted a Rosemary and Rue review, and says, "This was a great book." That...works for me, really. I am a simple soul.

I leave you for now with the Fresh Fiction review of An Artificial Night, which says, "The third in a series featuring October 'Toby' Daye, this story ratchets up the suspense as she literally comes face-to-face with her own death. But despite the grim subject matter, there's a lot of humor, much of which comes from Toby's dry wit and sarcastic attitude. The world building is vivid and realistic, whether it's the human world or one of the fae realms. Readers of the previous books will appreciate the many returning characters, and Blind Michael is a truly chilling villain. This book could be read as a standalone, but I do recommend reading the first books, Rosemary and Rue and A Local Habitation, beforehand. It helps with the rather complex backstory, and they are just as good as this one. Besides, if you're a fan of urban fantasy, this whole series should be in your library anyway!"

See you at the bookstore!

It's Sunday, and that means it's time for a Feed review roundup! ...what? Look, I need to justify these things somehow, and this is as good an excuse as any. Next week, I'll probably use being carbon-based as my excuse. Anyway:

The Literate Kitty has posted a lengthy review of Feed, and says, "Every once in awhile, though, something manages to exceed all your expectations, proving to be far better than you'd even hoped. So, with that in mind, let me start by saying that I was totally unprepared for Feed." Also, "Feed is an intricate yet at the same time sort of simplistic tale, dealing both with 'big issues' such as the role of the media, politics, duty, and governmental and societal responses to major outbreaks (including all the paranoia, irrational fear, and hatred that too often result); as well as looking at 'smaller issues' like friendship, integrity and honesty, family, and sometimes just figuring out how to get through another day." Very nice.

tigertoy provides today's Livejournal review of Feed, and says, "On one level, this is a nearly mindless high-speed romp through a world derived from a premise so silly that it is not enough to suspend your disbelief, you must actually expel it. On another level, it's a spot on, scathing commentary on the society we live in today, with a clear message that a lot of people need to hear. I could quibble about a lot of things that don't seem to be quite right, but they're just quibbles; the story works." Excellent.

The Book Bag has posted a review of Feed, and says, "Feed is a book filled with menace and fear that grips you hard from the opening lines and doesn't let go. Probably won't even long after the final page of the final book in the trilogy. Absolutely superb." Short, sweet, and awesome.

Alpha Reader has also posted a lovely review of Feed, and says, "This book is a spectacular Zombie-romp. But to call it a 'Zombie' book is too simplistic. It's more a post-Apocalyptic political thriller with Zombies in the background. Seanan McGuire, aka 'Mira Grant' is a deft hand at world-building and characterization, and she is in her writing element in this living undead disaster-filled universe." What can I say? I like me some dead stuff.

There's a lovely short review of Feed up at We Zombie. No pull quotes, since again, short, but you should still have a look.

That's it for right now—believe me, there's buckets and buckets more to come, as I struggle to kill my link file before Australia—and here's hoping you've had a wonderful weekend!

With An Artificial Night [Amazon]|[Mysterious Galaxy] just around the corner and the links building up like crazy, it's time for a Toby-centric review roundup. To, y'know, take the pressure off a little bit. Also? It's fun.

First up, the Literate Kitty reminds us where it all began with an excellent review of Rosemary and Rue. She says, "Even though Rosemary and Rue reads as if it came from the pen of an experienced writer, it is, in fact, Seanan McGuire's first published novel...and what a fabulously-engrossing novel she has produced for her debut. Avoiding the major pitfall inherent in the work of so many other writers out there today—that of falling back on yet another retelling of a story we've all read before—McGuire has created a fresh and original story, with an array of well-drawn characters, an extremely well-realized world, and full of intricate plotting—and she has accomplished it all in a poetic, lyrical style." Awesome!

You can't stop the beat, and the Literate Kitty keeps rocking with a review of A Local Habitation. She says, "McGuire has succeeded in fashioning yet another brilliantly-inventive, twisty tale. She’s given me characters I genuinely care about and a world I'm fascinated with; I can hardly wait to see how those characters and that world interact and change and grow as time passes. Far from being a stagnant place which lives only on the printed page, McGuire's creation now runs freely through my imagination...and I'm more than happy to let it do so, for as long as she writes such compelling and beautiful stories." Ahem. Swoon.

Rene at Errant Dreams has posted a thoughtful, balanced review of A Local Habitation, and says, "This book has so many well-constructed layers that I got completely sucked in. I was on tenterhooks worrying about characters that I genuinely cared for, while having a blast learning about and trying to figure out a wonderfully complex set of interactions between the fae and the modern world. And while Toby is definitely an urban fantasy heroine, she manages to do it without a lot of the self-indulgent self-pity that I've seen in other urban fantasy series. This book made me care, laugh, and cry, and I can't wait to see what Toby does next." Win!

I Read Good (great blog name) has posted a review of A Local Habitation, and says, "Once again, Seanan McGuire has delivered an awesome read. A Local Habitation is fantastic." Short, sweet, works for me.

And the cherry atop today's sundae of awesome...a shiny new review of An Artificial Night from Kendra at Lurv ala Mode. She says, "An Artificial Night carries on the series tradition of starting off with a bang and pretty much refusing to let the reader rest from there on out. Which is how I like this series to be: fast-paced, gritty and emotionally gripping." Also: "This has been the kind of series that I ache for the next book immediately upon finishing the current release." So much awesome, there are no words.

That's it for right now; more to come, with a Feed-centric roundup scheduled for this weekend, as I try to beat down the links. Twenty-five days to An Artificial Night!

The links are seriously trying to eat me over here, you guys. And in answer to a question I keep getting asked (well, two questions, really): I don't link every review, whether positive or negative, because some of them are short, or have spoilers, or don't show up in my Google scans, or are friend-locked here on LJ, or or or. I tend to throw links I plan to post into a big list, and then grab almost at random when doing a roundup. So while half the links will be new, half of them will be older, and have been patiently waiting their turn. All good things come to those who wait.

Anyway...

Harriet Klausner has reviewed An Artificial Night. I don't know how she reads as much as she does, but the appearance of her review means that release really is right around the corner. The terrifying...terrifying corner.

The Literate Kitty has also posted a review of An Artificial Night. I have to say, I love this review, because the reviewer's sense of humor cracks me up. She says "Have a tough job involving some nasty-angry-crazy fae business, dial 555-TOBY," and "So, yes, when Toby wakes up each day, she’d really prefer there be considerably less of that charging-headfirst-into-danger penciled in on her daily planner. Her life is tough enough, without the equivalent of walking around sticking forks into wall outlets in flooded rooms during electrical storms." Love! As for the book itself, she says:

"As much as I'm crazy about the first two books in this series...I love An Artificial Night that much more."

...and...

"An Artificial Night is both pure fairy tale—a spine-tingly reminder of all those fantastical stories from my youth—and gritty, tough tale, which feels really right."

Backing up a book, Amberdrake has posted a review of A Local Habitation at BSC Review. She says, "I found this second book in the series to be a very quick, fun, and interesting read. I really enjoy October as a character, because she isn’t perfect and she knows it, and she works around her limitations as well as the expectations others have of her. Another little treat is McGuire's use of Shakespeare in the titles. Both Rosemary and Rue and A Local Habitation are from Shakespeare, and they are both very fitting for the books they title. (I would tell you why they are fitting, but I found it very fun to do the research and find the original quotes and read the surrounding text and get why the author chose them as the titles. Trust me, it won't take long to find out and you'll have fun along the way.)" Anyone advocating Shakespeare is okay by me!

Charlotte has reviewed Feed over at Blogging For A Good Book, and she says, "The prose, punctuated by posts from George, Shaun, and Buffy, is as fast moving and punchline-driven as the tagline on the cover (“The good news: we survived. The bad news: so did they”). The close sibling relationship between George and Shaun, despite their constant bickering, is well done, and it’s their fear for one another that makes the stakes seem real." Yay!

An excellent review/recommendation of Feed is up at Beatrice, and says, "Given the completeness of this particular story, it will be interesting to see where she takes the two promised sequels: What else will she have to say about her zombie-ridden society?" Mwahahahaahahaha.

Finally for today, a review of the Feed audiobook is up at Robots and Vamps. Matt says, "Holy shit. Excuse me for a second while I catch my breath and I apologize for the curse words. For a change, I am going to discuss the ending of this novel first. There is an event that occurs at the end of this story that absolutely crushed me and I still can’t believe that Ms. Grant did it. It was truly epic. For spoiler reasons I won’t discuss the plot twist here but I am in total awe of the author for taking this risk in this day and age of safe urban fantasy fiction. I am still in shock. Let’s put it this way, it affected me the whole day at work as I replayed the events in my head. Wow." I'm...gonna call that a win, really. Yeah. (Plus, there's a comparison to The Stand. EPIC VICTORY.)

More to come!

I am home from Spokane, Washington, where I had a fabulous time as Spocon 2010's Music Guest of Honor. I'll actually post about it later, when I'm fully awake and capable of thoughts beyond "shower good, port pretty." For right now, have a roundup of the review links that came in while I was offline.

quippe has posted a review of Rosemary and Rue on Livejournal's own Urban Fantasy Fan community, and says "Seanan McGuire's novel, the first in a series, is an entertaining introduction to a carefully constructed urban fantasy world where Fae and humans live an awkward side-by-side existence." Also, "An interesting urban fantasy whose central character is very different to the type usually found in this type of fiction and a carefully constructed world with a huge amount of potential, this is an entertaining novel and I will be reading more of this series."

quippe has also posted a review of Feed, and says "Mira Grant has created a world where zombies and technology exist simultaneously and her carefully thought through society was a joy to read. Although the mystery element was a little too perfunctory and played second string to the world-building, the book ends with a set-up for the mystery to be developed in the sequel and I shall definitely be reading it."

Over at Book Addicts, a review of Feed has been posted, and says "The night I finished Feed, slept with my living room lights on because I couldn't handle sleeping in a completely dark apartment. I knew the dangers going into this when I picked up a book about Zombies, but I plunged in anyways. Yes, the size of the book is a little intimidating, but...just read it. The hooks go in and you’re dragged through this book like being dragged behind a boat on nothing more substantial than a piece of cardboard. It's terrifying and thrilling and we won't talk about the boat-and-cardboard-incident."

Yay! There's also a fun new interview with me-as-Mira, where some totally new questions were asked. It's well-worth checking out. Plus, it comes with an awesome contest. Take a look!

...okay, back to Toby. There's a new review of Rosemary and Rue up at All Things Urban Fantasy, which says "Rosemary and Rue, which gets its title from Shakespeare's A Winter's Tale, is a gritty and glorious true urban fantasy. I defy you to put this book down after the first chapter." Wow! Also, "Overall, Rosemary and Rue shocked me with how good it was." Double-wow!

Finally (for right now), Miss Geeky has reviewed Feed, and she says, "I really enjoyed Feed and I'm now really curious to what else Mira Grant has written (this is her first book as Grant, but she also writes as Seanan McGuire). Feed has a great story, which sucks you completely in. And it's got a fascinating world to discover along the way."

Well, folks, that's the weekend. I will now stagger off to bed. Tomorrow, I'll pretend to be coherent.

Yeah. Good luck with that.

There is a review of Feed in the October issue of SciFi Magazine. This is a major newsstand glossy, produced by the media group that ones the SyFy Channel (you know, where I spend much of my time). The cover story is about Resident Evil: Afterlife. Inside, there are stories about Haven and the new season of Eureka.

And then there is me.

A review of my book. In this magazine.

Sometimes this business of writing continues to astonish me. I know, I know: I worked hard, I worked for a long time, this isn't all being handed to me on platters by magical ponies from the moon (which is really a pity, as I would love to catch me some magical moon ponies of my very own). I don't sit here feeling like I'm getting things I shouldn't have...even if I do occasionally wonder when I'm going to wake up from this astonishingly detailed linear dream.

My book is reviewed in a magazine that includes a review of a Resident Evil movie and a television show based on the works of Stephen King. If there was any actual question of whether or not I may have accidentally sold my soul at the crossroads, this pretty much answers it.

Good thing I keep a fiddler around, huh?

Golly.

( Click here for review goodness.Collapse )

Well, I'm home from San Diego; more (much more) on that to come later, once I finish waking up and catching up on my email. First up, here's some link-spam to clean up what's come into my inbox in the interim. Forgive me that it's not as sorted as normal. I'm still not technically awake.

First up, check out this awesome Publishers Weekly review of The Living Dead 2, that upcoming anthology of zombie awesomeness from Night Shade Press. Does it mention my/Mira's new short story, "Everglades," set during the Rising? Why, yes. Yes, it does.

Second up, here's a shiny new review of A Local Habitation, posted by Tracy, who says "I said it in my review of Rosemary and Rue, the first book in the October Daye series; I tend to not be fond of fae mythos in general because it makes my brain hurt. I also said that I really liked Rosemary and Rue despite it...and despite myself. Well, with A Local Habitation, I may have to stop saying it altogether. I don't know what it is about Seanan McGuire, but she makes me like (if not totally understand) fae mythos. That's pretty darn impressive." Yay!

Our one Feed review for the day comes courtesy of Miss Geeky in the UK. It's well-written and thoughtful, but doesn't really have any good pull quotes for this sort of entry. So go check it out, shall you?

Now for the reviews I'm really getting excited about: two more reviews of An Artificial Night have hit the wide, wide world. Pardon me while I hyperventilate, 'kay?

The first is from Rebecca at Dirty Sexy Books, who says, "For me, An Artificial Night brought this series back up to the five-star rating that I gave to book one, Rosemary and Rue. Seanan McGuire's writing feels so dense and weighty to me, like a flour-less chocolate cake, but what astounds me is that her stories are such easy-to-read page-turners as well." Also, "I assumed this would be a rather simple three part play: Toby finds the kids; Toby fights the bad guy; Toby brings them home; The End. I was wrong. It was an emotional ride of ups and downs, and Toby is such a gritty, stubborn little fighter. I love her resolve. Toby's personal story progressed, and I have to say, I like where it's going." Glee!

Also up today is TJ's review at Dreams and Speculation. TJ says "Another strong installment in the Toby Daye series. The story isn't as gleaming with manic energy as the first or second, but still a fast and compelling read." Rock on!

And that's our administrative stuff for the right now. More later.

As noted yesterday, the links are no longer threatening to eat my world; the links are actively chowing down. So here is another review roundup, this one focusing on Feed. You're welcome!

Once again, we begin with the obligate Livejournal review, this time from my beloved markbernstein (see me identifying my bias?). He says "There are zombies. There's some gore, though not as much as you might think. And yes, some people (and animals) die in highly unpleasant ways. Still, I don't think of Feed by Mira Grant as a horror novel. It's science fiction in both the extrapolative and speculative sense, and a fine example of both." Aww, thanks! He also says "This is an outstanding book. Highly recommended." I couldn't have said it better.

Brion posted his review of Feed, and is also up-front about his biases, as he says "Disclaimer: I know the author personally, which may mean I'm biased in favor of awesomeness." This is because, clearly, I inspire awesome. He says "I grew up reading the science fiction classics: Asimov, Heinlein, Farmer, Niven, McCaffrey...What always kept me reading late at night, eyes wide open, was their ability to craft a detailed world, working out the consequences of the big What If, and then tell a great story in it. Grant doesn't disappoint; her post-Rising world is rich, weaving a gripping story from the societal consequences of a planet that has become quite legitimately paranoid." Thanks, Brion!

Amanda at Another Book Junkie has posted her review of Feed, and says "Oh man, I have a feeling we’ll be hearing a lot about Mira Grant in the future." Also, "Well done, Ms. Grant. Well done." There's a lot of review between those statements, and you should totally go read it. Don't worry, I'll wait.

Doyce Testerman has posted an awesome review of Feed. It is thoughtful and incisive and well-composed, and quoting it would do both you and it a disservice, because it hangs together so well as a contemplation of the book's message, as well as, y'know, as a review. Go check it out. Again, I'll wait, and thank you, Doyce.

A lovely Feed review has been posted at Flying Off the Shelves, and says "When I first started reading this book I wasn't expecting it to be nearly as good as it is. I questioned it and asked myself, "How could this book be any good after reading World War Z? I don't want to read another crappy zombie book.", but I took the chance and I found that this book is truly an amazing piece of writing. The characters are dynamic and complex. The story line will knock your socks off. I actually don't have anything bad to say about this book whatsoever. Even the science behind this story is interesting and spot on when it comes to basic virus information. If her next book is anything like this I may just die (and hopefully not zombify). Honestly, I rarely buy books in hardcover and I want this one in hardcover. If it isn't obvious already this book easily claims a five rating. Extremely well done Mira Grant." Yay!

That's five links posted, and barely a dent made in my list o' links. Clearly, I need to clean up my act. More to come!

We begin today's "oh my God it's full of links" round-up post with the obligate LiveJournal review, this time by quippe, who says Rosemary and Rue is "An interesting urban fantasy whose central character is very different to the type usually found in this type of fiction and a carefully constructed world with a huge amount of potential, this is an entertaining novel and I will be reading more of this series." Yay!

Meanwhile, the Book Faery has posted a lengthy, lovely review of Rosemary and Rue, and says "I was pleased because I kept guessing. I honestly, for the life of me, could not figure out the ending to this book early on. It wasn't until the very end, when tiny hints were given, that everything suddenly began to click in my mind. So much like the delightful Toby, I was riding this story on the edge of my seat, curious." Also, she likes Tybalt a lot. So at least he has one fan, right? (Ow, ow, don't hit!)

Carrie gives us a two-fer, starting with her review of Rosemary and Rue, in which she says something that pleased me enough to quote at length. Specifically:

"Fairies, to me, are a lot like sparkly vampires: they're based on creatures which were, originally, something much worse, but they've been prettied up to fit in with the buying habits of tween girls and unmarried aunts. Fairies now mean fluttery and flowery and beautiful, but I know better than to believe that. Fairies are supposed to be nasty, bitey little creatures, and impossibly beautiful ice queens, and confusing things made of mixed together bits of tree branches and stolen shoes. They're not creatures of light and happiness, no matter how much glitter you slap on them. Too few people want to write about the dark side of fairies.

"Seanan McGuire understands the dark.

"She blends together Shakespeare, Irish legends, Japanese myth, medieval ballads, and Victorian Flower Fairies to tell a tale so familiar it doesn't occur to you to look for where she's gotten it wrong because it's all unbelievably right. Toby lives in a world that makes sense, in a sad and disturbing way, because it's our world, if you could see just a little more of it."

See, I sort of want this on the back cover of a book, someday.

Carrie also reviewed A Local Habitation, and says "McGuire keeps to the strict first-person perspective that helps set this series apart from other books in the genre. Toby doesn’t know anything that she doesn’t have direct knowledge of, which means that there are times she gets it wrong. Even better, McGuire doesn't 'cheat' by giving Toby a dozen well-informed advisers to fill her in on everything under the sun. There were a few times that I'd figured out a clue before Toby did, and that added to the feeling of anticipation. When you can see the monster just outside the window, the story isn't so much about figuring out if the monster is really there as it is finding out what your heroine will do when it finally catches up to her. McGuire gives us monsters, and Toby is a hero, however reluctantly, because the harder it gets, the more she resigns herself to never giving up."

Carrie, you sure do say the sweetest things...

Also reviewing A Local Habitation is Dana of Reading Amidst the Chaos, who was sadly a little less quotable, but was also a little more critical (these things are not connected), and provides a nicely balanced perspective. (Mind you, as the author, I'm about as biased as they come, so my idea of "balanced" is "liked it, but won't let it have the keys to the liquor cabinet yet." So keep that in mind.) And she thinks they're getting better! Yay!

My list of links is still insane, and I leave for San Diego in two days, so watch for a Feed review roundup tomorrow. Right now, I'm going to go put lotion on my sunburn and sprawl under the air conditioning vent.

Nnngh.

The links are once again threatening to completely take over my rolling file*, which is sub-optimal, since I keep other things in that file which I need to be able to locate. So it's time for a mixed review roundup! Yay! Fun for the whole family, or at least, fun for me, since I enjoy review roundups. I'm weird like that. Anyway...

To begin with today, Larissa at Aphelion has posted a review of Feed. She opens with the now-ritual "You got your zombies in my politics!" chant, which makes me giggle, and goes on to say "If you want a simple, standard zombie story where you know who’s going to live and who’s going to die, and why, then this is not the book for you. If you want a political potboiler without humor or surprises, this is not the book for you." So who is it for? "If you want a vividly written science-fiction novel in a painstakingly detailed dystopian world about strong, snarky characters who will make you care desperately about them and keep you from putting the damn book down when your lunch break is over, well, then I can tell you from experience that this is the book for you."

Awesome!

Jawas Read, Too has posted a guest review of Feed, written by Pete, who says "I love zombies, but rarely see them executed well. Feed makes every attempt to buck the tropes of bad horror and says 'What-if' on a scale that will make nerds quiver with joy. What if humanity wasn’t full of idiots that run upstairs and remove their ability to safely egress the house? What if people were armed to protect themselves? What if loved ones were a secondary concern over self preservation? All of these scenarios and more come together to paint a world where humanity has survived the global epidemic of zombie infestation, and it bleeds into every corner of the book." I like making nerds quiver with joy. It's fun!

Tina Matanguihan at The Philippine Online Chronicles has posted a lengthy review of Feed, and says "Feed was actually quite...well, awesome. It's a political thriller written over a horror backdrop, where the presence of the zombies was used to compare how the living can still do more damage than the undead. There were only a handful of zombie encounters in the entire novel, but each of the situations felt so real, that it gave the impression that the zombies were everywhere. Mira Grant allows the readers to think that everything is going fine...and then throws a huge curve ball that changes the game. It's a thrill ride in 600 pages: I was intrigued, elated, shocked, horrified and most of all heartbroken all throughout the story, and...for me, that's what makes a story awesome."

Kain, at Zombies Are Coming, has posted a very long, well-considered review of Feed, and says "Feed is one of the few book, as of late, which I have picked up and gotten truly excited about once I started reading it. Not only is it a story that is immersive and captivating, but it is written by an author that is not afraid to take risks to tell the story." I got two out of two stumps! That's...disgustingly delightful.

Professor Beej does pop culture commentary with an academic slant, and has posted a review of Feed. The academic slant says "If there are two things I love, they’re blogging and zombies. And although I thought that my life would be nearly incomplete without the combination of these two relatively unrelated things, I am pleased to announce that because of reading Mira Grant's Feed, I can die a happy man." Victory! And...um...more seriously: "Feed does something with a topic that many seen worn out and trite that few authors can do. It creates a world that is based solidly in our own and tries to answer a few fundamental questions. Not about zombies or about how we would survive (Romero already taught us that, anyway), but about where we, as a people, act and react in the face of a truly unthinkable catastrophe, and just what part will this newfangled piece of technology we call the Internet play in it?"

Jen over at My Book Addiction has posted a review of A Local Habitation, and says "I loved pretty much everything about this book. It had another freaky mystery for Toby to solve. We get to see even more Fae (I wish I could get Elliot to make a bi-weekly visit to my house)." Also, "We get more of Toby's wonderful sense of humor, especially when she interacts with Quentin, her knight-in-training assistant Boy Wonder." I love that people love Quentin. It really makes my day, because I love him so, and this way I don't feel so bad about the fact that I keep including him in things. Victory is mine!

Kyle Brady has posted a review of A Local Habitation, and says "It's too early to yet tell whether the series will be one of the rare instances in the genre of fantasy where the main character learns, adapts, and matures throughout the various episodes, but it is easy to imagine October Daye becoming more powerful, more prominent, and ultimately more sinister in the coming years." Sinister Toby! That would be awesome! And...uh...sort of terrifying. I'll be over here...

An at A Writer's Block has included her thoughts on both Toby books to date in an awesome thumbnail review batch. Take a look!

The Book Pushers had me back for an interview, because they are wonderful people. I got to answer a question with "Look, a bunny," which always makes me a happy girl. I like bunnies. Bunnies are good.

Look! A zombie bunny with a chainsaw!

Glee.

(*My rolling file contains, among other things, notes on The Brightest Fell, pendant prompts, essay topics, blog post outlines for things I keep meaning to write, notes on the Jan stories, my set list for Westercon, and the outlines of the next "Thoughts On Writing" entry. So I really do need it to continue making something vaguely resembling linear sense, lest my head should explode.)