Score: 89/100 (8.9 out of 10)
Gilraen Returns: Doom of the Adjudicars I is the fourth book in the Jaralii Chronicles and the first book in the Doom of the Adjudicars extended series by Dr. Joanne Reid. It continues the story that began in the Gilraen and the Prophecy trilogy. Gilraen Returns is arguably the best looking of the books so far, all the way from its hyper-realistic but darker cover to its solid writing and formatting. All of these are a welcomed improvement from the earlier books in the series, particularly the first. The author's writing just seems to get better with each book, and whatever help she had with editing and formatting really paid off! This book, for better and for worse, is very... pleasant. It's arguably too pleasant. This is the most peaceful, pleasant book in the series that suddenly features an ultra-violent moment, then goes back to being peaceful and pleasant. If you really liked Gilraen and William from the previous books and just couldn't wait for them to be reunited and happy together, then this is the book for you. What continues to be great about this series is the world-building. The Gilraen and the Prophecy trilogy was awarded the “Best World-Building” moniker for a reason last season. Dr. Reid has a very broad brush and a very wide scope of what she wants her world to be like. Everything from the economics to the food and the wildlife of the world are put to page and greatly detailed. This just seems like a beautiful and fun world to live in even with the looming threat of the villainous Adjudicars. Something that unfortunately continues to be problematic with these books are the characters and the plot. If you thought Gilraen was a bit annoying and a Mary Sue in the first three books, then she's going to come across as insufferable in this book. If you thought William was a borderline-useless damsel in distress in the previous installments, then you're going to rage when he lifts 500 pounds easily yet continues to do little else other than be hot and complain to Gilraen when the going gets tough. William, who showed signs of having a temper and being irritable in the past, seems to let it show more often in this book. He's a bit of a pessimist and a worrywart. Now, to be fair, he's king now and it was thrust upon him by circumstance. He also lost another great love in his life in the form of his brother and has been separated from his girlfriend for months, so you can kinda understand why he's a more negative character now. It happens in real life too. People lose their smiles. Gilraen is definitely a decent person in terms of not becoming a tyrannical, genocidal queen with the amount of magical and political power she wields. Her main problem in this book and throughout the series is that she's very self-centered, self-righteous, and egotistical. She is almost verging on Empress Theresa-levels of "look how good and great I am." She seemingly can't do a good or exciting thing without having to announce it to the world, almost like Empress Theresa in her book, or every social media diva. At this point, they probably think Our Dear Supreme Leader Gilraen hit ten consecutive holes-in-one, bowled and pitched a perfect game, and won a spelling bee in the same day. Heck, the whole kingdom needs to know whenever she "mates." You heard that right. It's a matter of the state that everyone knows that there's no future without Gilraen's elven ovaries. She spends pages upon pages pondering how to dress in the best clothes, wear most elegant armor, and have the best crown made for herself. Now, that's not entirely unprecedented. We can understand it. Heck, how many RPG players and gamers spend hours upon hours customizing their characters just so they look cool or at least stand out on the map? If anything, it shows that Dr. Reid understands RPGs and gamers. Also, how many of us shower, wear makeup, comb our hairs, brush our teeth, and spend money on new clothes just to feel and look good? To be fair, what Gilraen is doing is not entirely unrealistic, especially for a person with her status. Gilraen states that the reason she wants to look her best and wants everyone in her court to look their best too is because she believes it will improve their outlook and performance. That's fair. That's why uniforms exist. That's why suits and ties exist. That's why people wear hats and do their hair. You could argue that Gilraen is just a bridezilla trying on different dresses. It's just that it's so obvious that Gilraen is trying to show off her greatness that makes it cloying. It's also that the story and plot grind to a halt while she's doing this, obsessing over every curve and gem in her crown. And that's another problem: the story and plot have ground to a halt. This book could just as easily be called “Gilraen and Peacetime” or “Jaralii in Peacetime” because this book is incredibly peaceful and borderline uneventful. Yes, there's a huge event that happens, but that was a foregone conclusion. The writing was on the wall since book one. Keep in mind, book three of Gilraen and the Prophecy featured the discovery of a mass genocide of elves, their decomposed bodies strewn all over—unmourned and unburied. It was terrifying, sobering, tragic, and sad. And we all knew that some of the culprits were still out there. However, there is no sense of urgency from anyone in Gilraen Returns. Yes, we are repeatedly reminded, usually in passing that the Adjudicars are still out there corrupting other continents and people in the world. But it's so in the background 99% of the time that we really don't feel the stakes like we did in the last book. Now, some of the “bad” things about this book can be considered fun or amusing depending on how you look at them. Look, we all go shopping, and some of us love shopping. It's fun. It's fun to try new clothes and accessorize, and that's what Gilraen is doing. Also, the kingdom's new rubber industry and bicycle manufacturing take up a good portion of this book. There's a lot of talk about economics in regard to the rubber and about how the bicycles can be used for both transportation and war. This book could just as easily have been called “Gilraen and the Coming Bicycle Blitzkrieg!” That's right, Gilraen is preparing to go Imperial-Japan-in-Malaysia on her enemies, you know, like a good girl? It can be really amusing to see this new technology introduced to King William and the citizens of Jaralii. It reminds us of “A Kid in King Arthur's Court” in which the protagonist from the future shares roller skates with the princess who fights to keep her balance and get used to them. That pretty much happens with Gilraen and William here, and it's quite cute. It just seems to overstay its welcome, you know like when you spray a good perfume a few times and it smells great, but then starts smelling terrible after 20 sprays. Everyone holds their breath and tries not to say much when passing by. You know how it is. What's really strange about all of this is that in the middle of all of this peace—with all its shopping, gossiping, bike-riding, and frolicking in the fields picking flowers and planting rubber plants—we get a scene in which an absolutely grotesque event is described. A massacre has occurred and some family has been flayed, mutilated, and their land set ablaze by the Adjudicars and their collaborators. This should really be horrifying and tragic, but instead just does not match tonally with 99% of this book. Another thing is, either we never got to know these victims or they were so forgettable in the previous books that we forgot about them. The tragedy just doesn't hit the way that it really should. It's just something that happens. It's like that scene in that Attila mini-series in which the village people are having their throats slit one after the other—yeah, it sucks and we wished it wasn't happening, but we have no emotional connection to these victims whatsoever. At least we cared about Rue, and we kinda cared about Richard. When something bad happened to Rue or Richard, we cared a little (or a lot) because we knew who these guys were and we knew how them suffering or dying would affect the other characters. The other thing beside the world-building and improved writing that we loved is that we got to see Miss Puss, Tom, and the other giant blue cats again. We've always had a soft spot for them, and they never cease being amusing. Gilraen even humorously warns some people that if they mess with the cats, they'll likely be eaten by them or thrown around like a ball of yarn. Apparently these things grow to be the size of houses or dinosaurs, and you can ride them! Can you imagine if your rascal house cat was 100+ times bigger and just as much of a rascal? Oh, before we forget, there's another great thing in this book: the mystery of the haunted room. There's this part of the palace that was once frequented by the deceased queen that is hella haunted. The piano in the room plays on its own. A portal can be opened that takes you to another dimension. The creepiness, mystery, and intrigue surrounding this room makes for some of the best moments in the whole series. We're not going to spoil it for you. Gilraen Returns is a good book with some notable improvements. If anything, it just leaves us wanting and desiring. We want to see and read about Gilraen & William fighting and struggling in battle, not arguing about what to wear to their ceremony or how much the cost of rubber will increase on the Jaralii stock market. We want to see our heroes in direct conflict with the villainous Adjudicars. These protagonists and villains should have blood feuds against each other at this point. They were literally at each others throats and killing each others comrades/kin in the last book. We hope that the action and melodrama pick up in the next book! Get it on Amazon!
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Score: 95/100 (9.5 out of 10)
This is by far the most enjoyable book we've read so far this season! We've gone from covering a Holocaust memoir, a book about a mother desperately fighting to raise a daughter with Trisomy 18, and multiple fantasy novels to this book about issues that have never been more relevant and heated: police brutality and racism. In the wake of George Floyd's tragic death and a summer full of Black Lives Matter protests and riots, the issues of police brutality and systemic racism have reared their ugly heads yet again. Author Frederick Douglas Reynolds is sure to remind us that not only is this not the first time, but it will likely not be the last time something like this happens as these issues are far more complex and nuanced than simply defunding or disbanding police. This is the meaning behind the ending of the title “Gray All Over.” What we absolutely love about this book, aside from the occasional humor and fun or interesting stories, is just how fair and balanced it is. The author is not preaching to the choir, nor is he grand standing or virtue signaling which seems to be the rave these days. No, Reynolds is telling us the inconvenient truths: he is telling us how it is both from the perspective of a Black man in America and a police officer of over a decade. He is brutally honest about it too, including discussing his own mistakes and vices as well as those of other police officers he has known. Reynolds comes right out and warns people with strong political or social views that they might be turned away and may want to stop reaching after two chapters. We're not quite sure if that's the case at all as Reynolds rarely if ever says anything attacking one ideology or another. Perhaps a better way to translate his warning is: if the truth hurts you too much, don't read this; or maybe consider why the truth hurts you so much. If you think racism doesn't exist and we just need to get over it, you need to spend a day in Compton. If you think dealing with violent criminals as a police officer without weapons of your own is practical, then you need to spend a night on patrol in Compton. That's right: Compton. Author Reynolds was once Officer Reynolds, an officer and later detective in Compton, one of the most infamous gang-ridden cities in America. To say that Officer Reynolds has seen it all would be an understatement, and that's where most of the intrigue of this book lies. Reynolds is a man of so much experience. He has been the “bad guy” and he has been the “good guy.” He has allowed his relationship with his wife and family to disintegrate during his work as an officer. He has woken up next to people he doesn't even remember meeting including a dwarf. He has busted the baddest gangsters. He has lost colleagues and classmates to gunfire, suicide, and more. He has seen humanity at its most depraved, but he has also experienced profound compassion such as being gotten off the hook twice by the same man. He has seen good people, bad people, not-so-bad people, men, women, children, Blacks, and Whites die in Compton. He was on the force in 1991 on the day that the Rodney King incident occurred, and after the acquittal of the five officers in 1992, he immediately recognized the danger and the storm that was about to overtake LA and the country. He warned his dispatch that they needed all hands on deck for the coming riots, and he was even confronted and called an “Uncle Tom” by one of the rioters for being a Black police officer. He frequently reminds us that ignorance more than anything fuels racism and violence. He frequently reminds us of just how quick things happen and how your life can change in a day or in an instant. You can be celebrating a great day with your family one moment, then be picking up bloody bodies the next. He tells us that nothing is more frightening than confronting a driver because you never know if they have a weapon, bodies or kidnapped people in the trunk, or if they intend to run you over. He is quick to remind us not to be hasty to judge others until we know the facts as we don't know what it must've been like to be in their shoes. Guns fire faster than you think. Anxiety sets in. Fear too. Drugs and days without sleep or spent handling conflicts take their toll on your psyche. What's incredibly tragic about what Reynolds tells us is that while war veterans are treated as heroes and receive a lot of attention for PTSD, police officers often do not. Police officers are there in the middle of criminals and their victims—the criminals with their constitutional rights to remain silence, bear arms, and not be unlawfully searched, and the victims with their right to life and property. Police officers don't have that kind of protection, and their mental health is not treated the same as people like veterans or domestic abuse victims. They are expected to be tough. They are expected to just deal with it day after day after day. And that's what we experience along with Reynolds in this book: the day to day experiences of a Black man and a Black police officer. You'd think that this kind of chronicling would be boring, but it most certainly isn't. There are twists and surprises, shocks and awes around every corner. And this book isn't without its humor. We're not even sure if it's intentional, but Reynolds definitely knows how to make us laugh. There are over 40 incidences of “m*********r” being uttered, and this almost becomes the Samuel L. Jackson Show in that regard. What's also funny is the slang that the officers come up with to describe the perpetrators (“d*******s”) and each other. There's also a surprising amount of flatulence and horseplay among the police officers. It's hilarious to read about. What's just organically funny is the stupid people doing stupid people things. The abysmally low IQs and overall common sense among some of the people Reynolds encounters is roll-on-floor-laughing worthy. And did we mention that Reynolds himself is not an angel? He has his moments of being a d******d himself, but we're relieved when others call him out on it. At the same time, we don't want anything really bad to happen to him. We feel for him, and we know why he does most of what he does. Oh, and also he was a bodyguard for Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre, but anyway... This book is another beautiful disaster. It's nothing like the preachy textbook we were expecting to read from the title, the foreward, or the book description. This book is actually very exciting and interesting to read! Get it on Amazon! Score: 94/100 (9.4 out of 10)
THIS is love. If we were going to sum up this book in just three words, it would be the three above. This book is beautiful, heartbreaking, frustrating, tragic, informative, inspiring, educational, and—above all—filled to the brim with LOVE. This book reads like a long yet beautiful love letter. How great a love is it when a mother (the author) sacrifices everything to be there to tirelessly care for her disabled daughter? Josie Murrell is the mother of Melissa, a miracle child born with a rare condition known as Trisomy 18 or Edwards syndrome. Despite her family being told that she was unlikely to reach her first birthday or ever be able to walk or speak, Melissa—with enormous help from her loved ones and some gold-hearted souls—shattered all expectations time and time again! Her journey, along with that of her mother, is one of the most tumultuous we've ever read about with a plethora of ups and downs, highs and lows, ebbs and flows. You can't read this book and not clench your fists or your teeth or keep your eyes dry. You can't read this book and not come away with a newfound appreciation for the gift of life. This book isn't only a great story, but it is also educational. Trisomy 18/Edwards syndrome is still a mysterious and rare disease that few have heard about or understand. It is a lack of understanding of the disease that lead to some of the dilemmas of the book including when medical staff or caregivers left the child unattended, at risk of overheating or asphyxiation, or gave up on feeding her when she wouldn't decide which food she wanted to eat in a usual amount of time. What could've simply read as a long eulogy actually reads like a reference or educational text with heart and soul. People can actually learn from this book and gain something from it—knowledge, awareness, inspiration. It is well-organized chronologically and everything is well-documented. The pictures are beautiful. What's amazing is, we first read this book as text-only, and it was already one of the most powerful things we'd ever read. The pictures just brought everything home. A few times we've considered and reconsidered the score of this book, mostly wondering if it might be too high. While it is a niche book intended to help a niche audience, that audience will certainly benefit from this. We cannot dock a book like this for having a narrow appeal. Those who need this book will benefit tenfold from both the practical lessons and inspiration within it. Melissa and Josie are tremendous examples of the power of faith and not giving up. Thank you for sharing Melissa's beautiful story with all of us! This is love. Get “Living with Trisomy 18/Edwards Syndrome” here! Score: 96/100 (9.6 out of 10)
We start the spring 2022 cycle with what may be the greatest book we've read so far at the Outstanding Creator Awards. This is one of the rare times we were tempted to give a book a 9.7 out of 10 (which would be our highest rating ever). Our eyes are still wet. Our nerves are still rattled. Our hearts are still torn. Our souls are filled with a sense of something we can't quite name... relief? Gratitude? Relief and gratitude that we do not live in a time and place where this genocide is occurring. Gratitude that we have here one of the greatest and most tragic stories ever told along with someone with the courage to tell it. This book is heartbreaking. This book is beautiful. This book is mesmerizing. This book is heavy and deep. This book is significant, important, and meaningful in a way that few other works can compare to. This book is perhaps the best memoir on the Holocaust ever written, and we've read them all. This may be a controversial statement, but the issue with most Holocaust books is that most either choose to avoid particulars and details for the reader's protection or sanity (most notable in “Night” by Elie Wiesel, explicitly stated by the author) or focus on life before internment with the assumption that the reader will fill in the blanks and realize the tragedy for themselves. The special and unique thing about this book is that it is presented as is—this is what happened, and this is how it happened. No frills, no fluff, no let's not talk about this. That's not to say that the narrator's subjective voice doesn't come through from time to time, but it doesn't rob the story of its pureness. It, in fact, adds to it. The reason for this may be that this tremendous and true tale by Holocaust survivor Hank Brodt is shone through the lens of his youngest daughter, Deborah Donnelly, who is an absolutely, positively fantastic writer! The way she's able to communicate her father's story and thoughts is borderline magical. It's haunting. The words on these pages are unforgettable. They're sharp. They're concise. They're understandable. And they never cease to be interesting. It's not in—and we hate to use a term with these connotation but we have none better—a voyeuristic way. We aren't just seeing and reading about Hank's experiences, we are there with Hank between those fences, in that ghetto, on that cattle car. We hurt when he hurts. We're uncomfortable when he's uncomfortable. We're anxious when he's anxious. We're angry when he's angry. We love when he loves. We're hopeful when he's hopeful. We lose when he loses. We're happy when he's happy. When he's sprayed with “stinging disinfectant” we can feel some of that sting. When Hank feels something and wants to do something, we feel it too and we want to do it too. There's a scene in which he decides to try to scrape off his brand at the expense of his skin because of his resolution that no human being should ever be branded. There's a scene in which he reaches into his cup of water to try to quench some of the thirst of a 50 year old on the cattle car who has given up hope trying to drink. There's a scene in which he asks a German officer a question about what crime he committed, and we realize it's a question that was burning in us as much as it was burning in him. Something else that makes this book special is how detailed it is about life in the concentration camps. There's a scene in which Hank was questioned by a German officer who seemed to be growing disillusioned with the Nazis. There's a scene in which Hank overheard an argument between a German soldier and the SS over the treatment of prisoners in which the soldier implored that they give the thirsty Jews water. Hank tells us that not all the Germans were evil or bad. Hank also reveals some of the useful things he did to survive such as protecting and saving his shoes and cup or waiting at the end of the soup line to try to get the heavier foods (like carrots) at the bottom of the bowl. It's powerful. This book is just so powerful and so well-written. It is presented with so much tact and respect as well. This is also the most genuine gratitude and optimism we've ever read in a book. Throughout this book, Hank has so little, yet he saves a bit of himself. He says that he wanted to preserve his humanity and be the good person that his mother raised so that if he ever saw him again, he'd at least be recognizable to her. We see that fight and struggle in him to preserve his humanity. What's more is that Hank in this book shares what seems to be an increasingly unpopular opinion: the good that America has done and the positive place it has in the world. Hank is grateful to America and to all the soldiers who served to defeat the Germans and liberate the Jews. He sees America as a beacon of hope for others suffering and dying in the world. Hank is grateful, and we are grateful to him, and we're grateful to God for allowing us to read his story. It is a powerful reminder to everyone of what can result when good men do nothing and when we forget history. Check out the book here! |
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