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Book Review: Dirge by Tim Marquitz

Dirge by Tim Marquitz

Permuted Press, 2015

Available: paperback and e-book

ISBN-13: 978-1618684301

The Necrolords have invaded the kingdom of Delham, bringing death and destruction with their control of the walking dead. Kallie is a young woman freed from years of abuse in a dungeon by Relian, a priest with the Brotherhood of Sorea. Relian has trained her to become the mysterious assassin Dirge, and gifted her with great powers. so she can protect her people and defeat the Necrolords. Disguised as Dirge, Kallie does the bidding of the ruthless emperor to earn the money needed for her people’s survival. Now she is thrust into a deadly game, a pawn of both the emperor and the lord who moves against him. Sent on a mission to capture a living Necrolord, she is torn between what is right and the revenge she wants.

Tim Marquitz has created a beautiful world of dark fantasy, complete with zombies, murder, and mayhem (though the walking dead take a back seat to the scheming and action of the story). Characters are well developed and you definitely feel something for all of them, be it hatred or sympathy. Kallie is a strong female protagonist, but not without flaws, and I found it easy to empathize with her and the difficult position she finds herself in. The story is full of amazing detail and depth, and you can imagine this world existing somewhere. Dirge is how dark fantasy should be done. I look forward to reading more about the people of Delham and Kallie’s story. Highly recommended

Contains: violence and bloodshed

Reviewed by Colleen Wanglund

Posted on April 21, 2015 by Kirsten, Reply

Book Review: Those Poor, Poor, Bastards (Dead West, Book 1) by Tim Marquitz, J.M. Martin, and Kenny Soward

Those Poor, Poor Bastards (Dead West, Book 1) by Tim Marquitz, J.M. Martin, and Kenny Soward

Ragnarok Publications, 2014

ISBN: 978-0991360529

Availability: paperback

In Those Poor, Poor Bastards, all Hell breaks loose when Nina and her father go to a small frontier town for supplies, and discover the town is overrun with zombies. Escaping along with a small group of survivors, Nina and her father escape. While they search for a safe refuge, they rescue a family in the woods, and come upon the long-abandoned Ft. Bluff, where they can fortify their defenses. There, Nina and the others meet a Jesuit priest, Father Mathias, who possesses strange powers that can kill the zombies.

Father Mathias tells our survivors about the mysterious Liao Xu, a man who sold his soul to the devil. The priest reveals that he has taken an artifact of great power from Liao Xu. Liao Xu attacks the fort to retrieve the artifact, and those who survive the attack end up as reluctant participants in an effort to stop the mysterious man from destroying the rest of humanity.

The first in a series, Those Poor, Poor Bastards is a fantastic book in the Western horror sub-genre. Marquitz, Martin, and Soward, combine their storytelling talents into a seamless narrative that takes a different look at the sometimes overused zombie trope. It is a fast-paced tale, but the character development doesn’t suffer because of it. There is more than one villain here, making Those Poor, Poor Bastards quite entertaining. I especially enjoyed the heroine, Nina, who is a well-rounded, complex character.

If you like zombies, or Western horror in general, then I recommend picking this one up, and I look forward to reading subsequent installments in the Dead West series. Recommended.

Contains: blood, gore, adult language and situations

Reviewed by: Colleen Wanglund

Posted on April 11, 2015 by Kirsten, Reply

MonsterLibrarian.com’s Top Picks for 2011- Young Adult and Children’s Books

So here we are- part two of the Top Picks list for 2011.

Each book on the list below was reviewed in the past year, although not all the books were published in 2011. If the book made a Top Picks list in the past, it won’t be on this year’s list (Wintergirls, by Laurie Halse Anderson, was first reviewed in 2009 and made the list that year, so it’s not on this year’s list).

Books that made this list were chosen by our reviewers as exceptional examples of compelling writing, creativity, and original illustration or presentation. Many of them provided considerable food for thought as well as entertainment value. The choices were made only from books reviewed for the site, so there are many fine titles that do not appear here. The Monster Librarian’s Top Picks for 2011, listed below, have not been ranked in any order(although I tried to list them alphabetically). We created lists for adult books, young adult books, and kids’ books. I previously posted the Top Picks for Adult Fiction in 2011. You’ll find the Top Picks booklists for young adults and children below. Enjoy!

Note for librarians and readers: As with all recommended reading lists, not all of The Monster Librarian’s Top Picks for 2011 will be appropriate for or appreciated by every reader. Please take the time to check out reviews of these titles at MonsterLibrarian.com before making a decision about reading them or recommending them to others.

The Monster Librarian’s Top Picks for Young Adults, 2011

A special mention goes to Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, by Ransom Riggs, chosen as a top pick by four different reviewers independently of each other.

Abarat series by Clive Barker (Abarat, Abarat: Days of Magic, Nights of War, and Abarat: Absolute Midnight)

Across the Universe by Beth Revis

Cryer’s Cross by Lisa McMann

Drink, Slay, Love by Sarah Beth Durst

Ghost Town (Morganville Vampires, Book 9) by Rachel Caine

Ink Exchange (Wicked Lovely) by Melissa Marr

Lockdown: Escape from Furnace 1 by Alexander Gordon Smith

Mercy by Rebecca Lim

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Nickel Plated by Aric Davis

Red Moon Rising by Peter Moore

Shiver (Wolves of Mercy Falls) by Maggie Stiefvater