Customer Reviews

Unshapely Things (Connor Grey, Book 1)

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(27)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Got to admit, this title has great timing. With the Dresden Files just kicking off on television there's some public interest in paranormal style sleuths who are tracking the kinds of critters that go bump in the night. A lion's share urban paranormals tend to feature female Buffy slayer types, and their male counterparts are a bit harder to find. I wasn't sure what to expect from this debut novel about a druid in a fairy-ridden Boston, but I have to admit I was pleasantly surprised.

Connor Grey is a druid, one of the magical creatures that make up the fey that have lived side by side with humanity since an even called the Convergence. Magically disabled by a recent run-in, Connor's life has spiraled downhill and forced him to eat more than a little humble pie. To supplement his disability checks, he takes part time work with the police force. But now a case has really got him rattled. Fairies are turning up dead in the Weird with their hearts cut out and Connor is sure more is going on than just a few random killings. Soon Connor is up to his eyeballs in trouble, and if he can't find his way out it just might mean the end of the world, as he knows it! The washed out, cynical detective doggedly pursuing a case against his better judgment is nothing new in fiction, fantasy or otherwise. Debut author Mark Del Franco manages to take on the storyline with some fresh twists, and some well-crafted characterization. Despite Connor fitting the mold of the private investigator, he's also got the glimmers of the hero he could become that creep through the cynicism and depression. And while Connor's spiral downward obviously is a tragedy for him, he wasn't a very nice guy in his former position--something he has to own up to. That aspect makes for a more interesting transformation as our jaded hero heads towards the potential of being a hero in truth. Most of the characters are three-dimensional and appropriately complex. Perhaps one of the liveliest characters is Stinkwort, a.k.a. Joe, a tiny winged "flit" who is not to be taken lightly despite his pink wings. Joe isn't just comic relief, which is a nice touch since it would have been relatively easy to put the character in that role. Del Marco manages to make Joe not only funny, but also poignant and powerful.

The story takes place on the streets Boston, albeit one populated with elves and magic, and it's clear the author has familiarity with the setting, which is a benefit when dealing with cityscapes. The way fairy and mundane world combine is fascinating, and Del Franco's descriptions and details indicate some thought-out world building. However, despite the details some of the mechanics of this urban fantasy are still hazy and Connor's own paranormal status a bit puzzling. Connor is a druid, and therefore a part of the fey, but other than his intuitive powers he seems basically human. It's unclear in the book if druids are essentially the term for humans with magic or if they are truly a different race from humans. While such creatures as the elves and fairies and trolls fall nicely into what is classically considered fey, druids don't traditionally get classified as fey, so the reader needs more clarification. While "druid" title versus "wizard" or "sorcerer" is unusual, there isn't much to distinguish why Connor is a druid rather than a wizard or sorcerer. Some kind of clarification would have helped to understand Connor's own position in the fey community as well as clarify what druids exactly were that was different from wizards or sorcerers. Despite these concerns, this wasn't a bad kickoff for a debut author; the opening tends to drag a bit and some of the characterization descriptions become redundant, but overall the story kept moving and kept things interesting all the way through a rewarding conclusion. Clearly the Connor's investigations aren't done yet and I'll be looking forward to seeing where the next cast takes his readers.

If you like murder mysteries tied with magic, this will likely be your cup of tea. Especially if you're looking for something with a stronger male voice and none of the romance/eroticism that inhabits for those who enjoy Unshapely Things, you might want to try Fool Moon by Jim Butcher or Stalking the Unicorn by Michael Resnick.

Happy Reading! ^_^ Shanshad

Someone's killing fae prostitutes in the Weird, a fringe neighborhood of Boston where the poor and the fae intersect.

Connor Grey, who used to live in much nicer environs, is seeing the effects in his new neighborhood--and he's been called in by his friend Murdock on the Boston Police Department to help with the investigation. Once upon a time, he'd have headed his own investigation on the part of the Guild, which serves as the Fae equivalent of a peace-keeping authority in this newly converged world. But after his injury at the hands of an eco-terrorist elf, his own druidic essence is blocked and the posh Guild office and status are gone. He's just a pensioner drawing disability and trying to get himself back together.

Now, Grey's getting his dose of excitement by helping the humans. He quickly discovers that the deaths are magically based and if someone doesn't stop them--the world could have another event similar to the Cataclysm, which brought Human and Fae worlds together back in 1900.

"Unshapely Things" is one of the best new novels I've read in a long time. Del Franco's world is well-realized, he's got both strong male and female characters, and he really knows how to keep the reader engaged and interested.

If you like Jim Butcher's "Dresden Files," Kim Harrison's Rachel Morgan, and Anita Blake before the books turned to erotica, you're going to love "Unshapely Things."

Very good start, Mr. Del Franco, I hope to see many more books from you in the future!

Admit it ladies... while we love our tough chicks who run around showing up the guys, once in a while we need to enjoy a man who can do the same thing. Enter Connor Grey. The ex-Druid introduces us to The Weird, the Boston neighborhood where the odd and unexplainable are the norm. Throw in a handful of slain faery hookers and you've got yourself an interesting premise for this novel.

So why the 3 star rating? Well, while this has an interesting plot and setting, likable characters and a good mystery, I found myself constantly bored. There was just something not there that I look for in a good can't-put-it-down book. Del Franco's writing style is alright though at times I felt as if he was forcing the ideas into the reader.

If you enjoyed Nightlife by Rob Thurman or enjoyed this book and haven't tried Nightlife yet these two are quite comparable. Though I myself didn't love this book as much as hoped I am happy to add it to my growing shelf of guys who can hold their own in the female dominated paranormals genre.

How deep can you fall when you once were a hero-druid, solving the most interesting crimes and being rewarded for it with money, star-dom and all kinds of pleasures? What if your powers get taken away from you and no one, no one, knows how to give them back to you? Connor knows. Connor lives in the Weird. If you can call waking up, being depressed and going to sleep 'living'...

Fey are being killed and their hearts are removed. Connor gets involved and suspects a ritual is being prepared. Finding out just what ritual is not easy and the search pits him against some of the Druid guild, who are the Fey's police' he no longer calls his friends. Actually... Even before he lost his powers he wouldn't have called them his friends either. With strong enemies, it's a difficult race. With suddenly the finish in sight, Connor seems to have gotten a lot wrong but a few things dangerously right...

Initially I was reluctant to buy this book. Since my addiction at a very young age to Agatha Christie I have developed an allergy against using deaths for plot reasons only and the description of this book provoked an allergic response. But I was wrong: the deaths in this book are not plot-drivers only; some of the people dying first appeared as well-developed characters who were very much alive.

For a first book, this is an excellent beginning. The characters are well-developed, the friendships rich and dynamic and the world vibrant and interesting. You're probably going to want to buy book 2, just like me...

I have to admit, after reading the other reviews here, I was prepared to really like this book. Especially since the main character is "broken", since I usually like books where the hero is flawed in some way. And on the positive side, the world was interesting, and the main character moderately so.

However, the characters never really developed or caught my interest, and the dialog was downright awful... painful and stilted, with jarring jumps that kept breaking the suspension of disbelief. If you enjoy the style of dialog in Jim Butcher, CE Murphy, or earlier Lois McMaster Bujold, I would suggest you avoid this book.

Since it's inevitable that comparisons will be drawn between Del Franco's Connor Grey and Butcher's Harry Dresden, I'll use the latter as the benchmark. Thus, I consider Grey the equivalent of Dresden's older brother: he's more mature, more serious, more cerebral, more self-possessed and more vulnerable, but possessed of the same ethics that compel him to get involved and do the right thing for the sake of doing the right thing.

I won't recap the plot, as that's available elsewhere, but I will share the points that informed my 3-star rating (which I regard as 'good').

(1) Del Franco spends the first 120+ pages (almost 7 full chapters) fleshing out the 'world'--what happened to Grey and why he's in the shape he's in, the characters and their relationships, the environment of a quirky Bostonian neighborhood, a mega-plot that involved a devious eco-terrorist, and the state of race relations among the humans, fae, elves, druids, &c. The nature of modern druidic practice also gets attention, but room is left for further mysteries to be explored. There's a lot of rich detail. A. Lot. TONS. The stage against which the action takes place is real, unique and solid. But--

(2) All those details and Grey's too-serious and relentless self-analysis (he spends a lot of time thinking while sitting at his computer, running, walking, bumming rides from his enigmatic friend, Murdock, &c) stall the plot. There's no tension in the first 7 chapters, no urgency, no vicarious excitement. Which is odd, because all the pieces that would be exciting if combined well are there. But if you're stout-hearted and push onward--

(3) The action really takes off in chapter 8. Suddenly, time is running out, the protagonists can't get all of the pieces of the puzzle together, and lots of dramatic action sweep the reader into the meat of the adventure. The book suddenly becomes a page-turner that's difficult to put down, and I found myself willing to forgive Del Franco for foisting so much information on me up front. The climax is rewarding, and as good as any you're going to read in a modern, dark urban fantasy novel, with a satisfying number of twists and turns. The denouement flows fluidly from those events and sets the stage for future novels in the budding "franchise."

Personally, I think this debut novel is stronger than Butcher's STORM FRONT (which I'd rate as 2 stars [fair]). In fact, were it not for item 2 above, I'd have given UNSHAPELY THINGS 4 stars. But as the Dresden novels have grown progressively stronger, the same could also be true of Connor Grey's adventures, which is why I'll be checking out the next book. Also to Grey's advantage is his lack of a flippant, smart-aleck sense of humor that borders on self-parody; I found the lack of adolescent dialogue refreshing.

Additionally, Grey's particular vulnerability makes him a character with whom I can empathize. Thus, as a reader, I enter the story through him. In the Dresden novels, the reader follows Harry, experiencing the adventures by watching over his shoulder from a safe remove. The latter is a vicarious thrill, but the former, equally thrilling, somehow feels more satisfying.

Finally, I fervently hope the publisher abandons the dull, PhotoShopped romance novel model on the cover and opts for cover art that broadcasts the novel's kinship with the Dresden Files and Simon R. Green's Nightside novels. A little mystery and a lot of macabre will go a long way to attracting some well-deserved attention.

I can't believe it. I expected a light-as-a-feather book, something that I'd probably forget five minutes after reading the last page. Instead, I got an interesting, involving, complex and very satisfying urban fantasy with a lead character that I give a damn about.

I've always been drawn to fantasies that break down the barriers between worlds, and this one does it with grit, grime and magic intact. Seriously, do yourself a favor and grab a copy. A perfect read for a cold, rainy night. One with a moon that shouldn't be in the sky.

Oh, and the only bad thing about this book ... knowing that you'll have to wait for his next one!

Set in an alternate Boston, preternatural beings have set up shop in a part of town renamed the Weird. The Weird is a little rough and living there can be tough. Connor Grey has recently had to move into the edge of the Weird. Because of an accident during a case for the Guild (preternatural political and policing body), Conner is a Druid without powers. Without powers, he can no longer work for the Guild and takes freelance jobs as a consultant and investigator to pay the bills. When the Boston police contact Conner about a series of ritualistic murders involving fairy prostitutes.

This book combines classic police stuff with magic and mysticism. The background story of how the Fey and Others were outed to humans and how that blends in with what we know to be history is well done. Also, the politics are interesting, both human and not. The supporting characters are well done and complex. The combination of fey beings presented is rich. I found this book by accident and am very glad I did. I'm looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

Most similar to the Desden files by Jim Butcher

Welcome to the world of the Weird, where Connor Grey lives and works. Connor is a Druid, albeit a crippled one. Connor's powers have been mysteriously inhibited, or contained, and until he can unravel the mystery, he is on disability from The Guild and working as a private consultant for the Boston Police Department on fey cases. When Connor is called to the scene of a dead fairy who was a prostitute, he discovers that other fey have been present, and that this is the third dead fey prostitute case Boston is investigating. But without his powers, Connor is barred from most of the Druids' resources and he is also vulnerable to attacks from evil-doers, not to mention of his own conscience. Will Connor survive the investigation, physically and mentally?


Connor encountered a radical elf, and an explosion from the encounter caused Connor to lose his considerable Druidic powers, thus rendering him disabled for his position of magical investigator for The Guild. We follow Connor through his recuperation after the accident - mental and physical. He gets work as a consultant with the Boston police in cases involving other fey creatures, like elves, flits and fairies. When asked to participate on a case involving dead fey prostitutes, Connor connects them in ways that humans would not consider - but by doing so he has put himself in the line of fire of the killer, and he has to use all of his resources and intelligence to stay alive in the face of magical weapons and prevent worldwide disaster.

The intriguing cast of characters keeps the readers involved with the mystery wrapped up in the fantasy. At first there seemed to be a kinship with Jim Butcher's Harry Dresden series, but the similarity is superficial after the introduction. Del Franco has a much different sense of humor and style, with more focus on the technical aspects of magic and its uses.

I enjoyed this foray into The Weird and following Connor through his trials and tribulations. The story was not left so open-ended so as to leave the reader hanging, but it did allow for more in a series. I look forward to spending more time with Connor in the future, and learning more about him and his world.

Well, this book was "recommended by Amazon" based upon my purchases of the Dresden Files and Simon Green's NightSide series. However, I have found that "urban fantasy" too often means poorly written "Vampire Romance"*. Not here.

Not that there's not a touch of romance later on. Well done too.

But here we have the fey, the Sidthe, faeries, not vampires. And, it's a pretty darn good mystery too.

I like the characters and the setting. Later books get a better, this one gets off to a slightly slow start to a new series, but I have now read 3 of them and ordered the 4th.

* and hey, if you like that sort of thing, fine by me.