Sonya Bateman

You may also read my review here: http://www.mybookishways.com/2011/03/review-master-and-apprentice-by-sonya.html

Master and Apprentice picks up a year after Master of None ends, with Gavyn and Ian systematically hunting down and killing members of the Morai tribe, the djinn responsible for wiping out the Dehbei, Ian’s clan. The Morai used humans to slaughter the Dehbei, since djinn cannot directly kill humans. A curse, the ham’tari, was put on Ian. If he doesn’t kill every last one of show more the Morai, he will suffer greatly. This curse also helps to explain the phenomenal bad luck that Gavyn has suffered from all of his life, as it also effects Ian’s descendents. As Gavyn travels with Ian, he realizes that not all Morai are the same, and starts to wonder just how much he can trust Ian. Then they meet Calvin, a Morai, and a monk, who was not involved in the slaughter, and uses the form of a rather charming raccoon. When Akila, Ian’s wife, is taken by a mysterious cult lead by a Morai bent on using Ian for world domination, Gavyn will have to rely on Calvin to teach him how to use his newfound powers (including transformation with a memorable scene involving his sneaker), and get them out alive.

I LOVED Master of None, but if possible, I liked Master and Apprentice even more. The tone is a bit more serious this time around, but Gavyn is still his snarky self (sarcasm is a serious weapon with this guy), and still retains the moral code that makes him so charming and likeable. Ian begins the novel rigid in his mission, but begins to change when he realizes that things may not be what they seem with the Morai. Calvin is a wonderful addition to the lineup, and Tory is back as well to offer help. I laughed out loud at times, and Ms. Bateman’s writing is better than ever! She also manages to create a rather layered story without things getting confusing, a talent which is greatly appreciated by this reader! She puts poor Ian through the ringer in this book, as well as Gavyn, and I found myself flinching in spots, but nothing is too gory or gratuitous, and just makes getting the bad guys that much more satisfying. Every now and then there are books you wanna hug, and this was that book for me. You know, the one you start babbling about the minute someone gives you an opening? Yeah, you know the ones I’m talking about…

If you haven’t discovered this series, run, don’t walk, to grab yourself a copy of Master of None, and for goodness sake, pre-order Master and Apprentice! It’s that good. show less

I don't give many 5 star reviews, and I was a little hesitant doing so with this one, but I decided to round up because it's a well-written, thoroughly enjoyable book from beginning to end. The narrative and dialogue are well-written without a wasted, superfluous word. This is not a roller coaster story with its slow up and crazy, exciting downs. It's more like a rocket car the blasts off and pushes you back in your seat for the entire ride. Editing is very good. I caught a missing opening show more quotation mark near the end of the book, and that's the only oops I recall seeing. Was it perfect? Of course not. Haven't met the book that is. I felt a slight decline near the end. The enemy is described as this huge, powerful paramilitary force bent on eradicating all non humans. This made the ending a little implausible as it was wrapped up neatly and with relative ease. The bad guys have this big noise machine (I assume it blasts a combination of gangsta rap and jazz) that's supposed to turn non human brains into mush, but they don't bother to use it until the hero is nearby and able to shut it off before it makes his kind extinct. It's also only briefly mentioned and isn't really part of the story until the end. A bit of a plot hole. show less

Gideon, transporter of corpses across New York City, does not lead a conventional life and he certainly hasn’t has a conventional upbringing

But even he wasn’t prepared for the corpses to talk back, a werewolf stalking central park and finding a whole world of Fae, magic and more

And a team of hunters dedicated to wiping them all out – and ready to use him to do it.

This book has a lot of wonderful elements I always love.

We have a very wide world of various supernatural creatures – with show more lots of hints of complex cultures and histories and different interactions which is definitely something I look for. There’s also a lack of info dumping (though that may be due to other issues later)

I really love how the werewolves are linked to moonlight which is a really original touch which I always appreciate. And bogeypeople? I love the bogeypeople. That’s a scary addition to the supernatural menagerie of this world. It’s fun, it’s broad and it has vast potential.

I also like the twist of the bad guys, the fear of the power they have not from just money and resources – but their knowledge of the supernatural. Normal humans who are determined to figure out every last weakness of the supernatural are considered utterly, unassailably powerful which is definitely different from what I’ve read before

The pacing of this book barely pauses for a second. The action starts very early, there’s very little delay or even introduction before we race into the story. We have lots of action, lots of information and this huge wonderful broad world to absorb as soon as possible. It’s a book that quickly drags you in then has you sprinting none stop all to the end.

We do have a little bit of a Chosen One scenario – because there really is no real explanation for why Gideon has the world changing super woo-woo. To say nothing to the pretty terrible magical-world-building of having Gideon master impossible-for-him-faerie powers with the power of imagination. I generally like Gideon a lot, I like his attitude, his humour, his resilience, his determination and the fact he’s been outspoken without being ridiculously foolish and annoying with it. But super powers just ‘cos is never something that I’m a fan of.

I do think this book was perhaps a little rushed in many way which, in turn, made some elements of it far too hurried.

For example, we get insights into Gideon’s past which was sad and tragic. Of course it was sad and tragic. Isn’t it ALWAYS sad and tragic? But rather than just abusive parents he actually has brothers who hunted and shot him for fun.

Shot him. With a gun. A real gun. Not an air rifle. A gun. Isn’t that just… a bit too quick and extreme? And why is he afraid of having an actual address to hide from, what, 3 poor hunters who kill animals? What, they have access to FBI databases or something? They’re going to hunt you down and shoot you with rifles in New York City?

Or his relationship with Taeral which goes form “cursed human begone” to “brother mine we are united and loyal forever”

Or there’s Gideon’s reaction to the supernatural which is like 2 seconds of blinking (and a really nice shocked reaction to actual werewolves existing) to kind of taking it all in stride

Or there’s the way he gets really really really used to actually killing people.

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This is not what I was expecting to get when I bought this book. Instead, it's much better.

First of all, it's a relief to find an urban fantasy novel that isn't "paranormal romance" with a little harder edge. The romantic element has absolutely nothing to do with the relationship between the genie and human at the center of the story. Each has his own love interest, set up well before the events of this book, and there's no bothersome love polygon to deal with. This is an action story, not a show more romance.

This actually holds up well against the early Dresden Files books, with a very fallible hero thrown in over his head and learning how to swim without quite drowning. I have the next novella in the series, and will probably get the second book soon. I can't wait to see how the thief tackles the rest of the forty Ali Babas... show less