Since a few people asked me to post this once it was ready...

[tenaya-owlcat.livejournal.com]

There's been a lot of discussion of Talia Gryphon's Key to Conflict around here, and I for one share the opinion of its appalling-ness. Yes, that's a word... I so decree that it is. ;) Anyway, I review science fiction and fantasy books for my local newspaper, and I decided to tackle this one.

Rarely have I read such drivel.

My review is posted on the Davis Enterprise website. If the link doesn't work for some reason, please let me know, and I'll transfer the text of my review to the post.

Happy snarking!

Blogflog: Comic Con Part Q

[pith]

Link: http://blog.laurellkhamilton.org/2007/07/comic-con-part-q.html
Title: Comic Con Part Q
Admission: Not my best flog ever. But… poor Neil!

The entry in which LKH brags yet again about being at Comic Con. And breaks my heart a little.

The three [movies] that I'm aware of are: Stardust, Beowulf, and Coreline. They are not so accidentally all Neil Gaiman projects. Two based on his books and one he co-wrote the screenplay for. Why are we aware of those movies more than others? We've actually spoken with Neil, and he and I share an agent.

I. What. Huh? (And it's Coraline, by the way. From what I can remember, Neil said it was supposed to be "Caroline" but he kept mistyping it so he just went with it.)

They've spoken with Neil? The man drips awesomeness. If she's spoken with him, how did she not manage to catch even a bit of awesomeness?

She and Neil share an agent? How? Is it to balance out the sheer awesomeness of Neil? DOES NOT COMPUTE. Neil is actually a WRITER. Go look at his blog. He makes even the most everyday things like walking his dog seem magical. I'm sure even his grocery lists are things of beauty. He reads. He writes. He collaborates. He doesn't use some lame-ass Ivory Tower defence when the real world doesn't go his way. He is, from every account I've encountered, not just a great writer, but a fine human being.

I admit, I died a little when I read the Neil part of the blog. I mean, if she somehow did not manage to capture even an ounce of Neil's awesomeness just by being in the same space, what if she accidentally infected him?

ETA: I guess there's one saving grace. I've yet to see a Neil Gaiman endorsement on any of her books.