Books begun but not finished: Phyllis Ames, FROZEN IN AMBER

Phyllis Ames’ Frozen in Amber (DAW, 2015) seemed like it would be perfectly unobjectionable urban fantasy about a shapeshifting lawyer. One appreciates the odd unobjectionable urban fantasy – but this lacks very great appeal, and moreover jangled the nerves within three dozen pages. The narrator, the (apparently white) shapeshifter lawyer and descendant of the head of the law firm, thinks of her Native American (First Nations? I don’t know, he might be Canadian) law clerk,

I often wondered how he excelled at white man’s law and logic.

One finds this to be… unbecoming. One is disinclined to read on, there to potentially discover other random nuggets of even more obvious racism. It upsets the digestion, and disagrees with one’s blood pressure.

And it is not as though there are not a vast quantity of other books in the world. Still. One is grieved to be deprived of the possibilities inherent in shapeshifter lawyer so soon.

Recently arrived review copies

Note to self: do not photograph books with reddish covers against the reddish rug. This is bad strategy.

Seven? Seven.

Courtesy of DAW Books (which reminds me that I must get in touch with the nice person at DAW Books who has been sending me things to thank them, and perhaps make one or two more specific requests), Jacey Bedford’s CROSSWAYS and Phyllis Ames’ FROZEN IN AMBER.

Courtesy of Angry Robot Books, Alyc Helms’ THE DRAGONS OF HEAVEN, Danielle L. Jensen’s HIDDEN HUNTRESS, Ishbelle Bee’s THE CURIOUS TALE OF THE BUTTERFLY GIRL, and Susan Murray’s THE WATERBORNE BLADE and WATERBORNE EXILE.