Doreen Sheridan

Professional book critic, amateur cellist, full-time polymath. Occasional game designer, perpetual game enthusiast. Mom of 3. Arsenal till I die. I like a good story. My other mystery reviews can be found here: https://www.criminalelement.com/author/dvaleris/

Most commented posts

  1. Deathless (Leningrad Diptych #1) by Catherynne M. Valente — 12 comments
  2. Sweet Tea by Piper Huguley — 7 comments
  3. I Was Told There’d Be Cake by Sloane Crosley — 6 comments
  4. A Memory Called Empire (Teixcalaan #1) by Arkady Martine — 6 comments
  5. Busting Vegas by Ben Mezrich — 5 comments

Author's posts

Embers of War by Gareth L. Powell

Intriguing space opera with lots of twists and turns that I kicked myself for not anticipating sooner (tho to Gareth L Powell’s credit, there were so many red herrings that I was constantly second-guessing myself!) The writing is wonderfully descriptive, and I loved the concepts and definitely want to see where our ragtag group of …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2018/02/20/embers-of-war-by-gareth-l-powell/

Beneath the Sugar Sky (Wayward Children #3) by Seanan McGuire

No sign of Jack and Jill in this installment, except for a reference to the events in the first book, and while I was a bit disappointed since I wanted a lot more of them after Book Two, the storyline here definitely made me feel a lot better about it fast. A girl falls out …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2018/02/17/beneath-the-sugar-sky-wayward-children-3-by-seanan-mcguire/

Real Tigers (Slough House #3) by Mick Herron

Oh my God, I finished all these books by the 13th! *collapses into oozing puddle before picking up her next work assignment.* I freaking love Mick Herron, and I’m not sure if there are very many authors I could have binged under such time pressures and still come out wanting more of. I love the …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2018/02/14/real-tigers-slough-house-3-by-mick-herron/

Dead Lions (Slough House #2) by Mick Herron

Good tho, to a certain extent, I enjoyed Slow Horses better because that one was undoubtedly a win for our agents. This one… well, it’s complicated. See, an old spy is found dead on a bus he didn’t have a ticket for, and no one seems to care except Jackson Lamb, who worked with the …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2018/02/12/dead-lions-slough-house-2-by-mick-herron/

The Case of the Missing Marquess (Enola Holmes #1) by Nancy Springer

A surprisingly unsentimental view of life in Victorian England, far removed from romance and riches. Our heroine, Enola Holmes, does start out moneyed, after a fashion: she lives on her ancestral estate with her mother, but Nancy Springer is quick to point out that the women aren’t rich in their own right, as all their …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2018/02/11/the-case-of-the-missing-marquess-enola-holmes-1-by-nancy-springer/

Slow Horses (Slough House #1) by Mick Herron

It’s a bit weird coming to this book after reading the author’s excellent, bleak Nobody Walks. At about the halfway mark of Slow Horses, I felt an uneasy stirring of familiarity, much like I had upon reading Agatha Christie’s The Murder Of Roger Ackroyd after her excellent, bleak Endless Night. While the plot twist in …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2018/02/09/slow-horses-slough-house-1-by-mick-herron/

Ninefox Gambit (The Machineries of Empire, #1) by Yoon Ha Lee

Whoo, jeez, this was one hell of a read! So you know that bromide, that any scientific technology, advanced enough, is indistinguishable from magic? To a very large extent, one can apply that to science fiction, where if we follow theoretical math and physics to their natural conclusions, the results are indistinguishable from fantasy. Because, …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2018/02/07/ninefox-gambit-the-machineries-of-empire-1-by-yoon-ha-lee/

Time Shards (Time Shards #1) by Dana Fredsti and David Fitzgerald

Wrapping up the newest available seasons of Flash and Legends Of Tomorrow on Netflix (LoT has gotten significantly better in this second season despite still having zero regard for science and physics, whereas Flash in the Savitar season is godawful,) I’m a little leery of time-travel shenanigans right now. But like Fox Mulder, I want …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2018/01/28/time-shards-time-shards-1-by-dana-fredsti-and-david-fitzgerald/

An Excess Male by Maggie Shen King

4.5 stars It feels a bit mean to criticize such a thoughtful book, but I did have very long stretches of not understanding how Wei Guo could possibly be as awesome as he is given his surroundings and upbringing. Then I remind myself that he’s 44 years old and has spent that time learning how …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2018/01/26/an-excess-male-by-maggie-shen-king/

Forest of a Thousand Lanterns (Rise of the Empress #1) by Julie C. Dao

I fucking devoured this book. It is dark and brutal and cruel and one of the most honest portrayals of what it means to be a woman with ambition when everyone around you automatically assumes you lack agency because of your youth and beauty OR views you as a threat simply because of those last …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2018/01/17/forest-of-a-thousand-lanterns-rise-of-the-empress-1-by-julie-c-dao/