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Walker Papers #2
Thunderbird Falls
It's the end of the world…
Again.
For all the bodies she's encountering, you'd think beat cop Joanne Walker works in Homicide. But no, Joanne's a reluctant shaman who last saved mankind three months ago—surely she deserves more of a break! Yet, incredibly, "Armageddon, Take Two" is mere days away.
There's not a minute to waste.
Yet when her spirit guide inexplicably disappears, Joanne needs help from other sources. Especially after she accidentally unleashes Lower World demons on Seattle. Damn. With the mother of all showdowns gathering force, it's the worst possible moment for Joanne to realize she should have learned more about controlling her powers. Or to discover she's being lied to…
Again.
For all the bodies she's encountering, you'd think beat cop Joanne Walker works in Homicide. But no, Joanne's a reluctant shaman who last saved mankind three months ago—surely she deserves more of a break! Yet, incredibly, "Armageddon, Take Two" is mere days away.
There's not a minute to waste.
Yet when her spirit guide inexplicably disappears, Joanne needs help from other sources. Especially after she accidentally unleashes Lower World demons on Seattle. Damn. With the mother of all showdowns gathering force, it's the worst possible moment for Joanne to realize she should have learned more about controlling her powers. Or to discover she's being lied to…
305 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2006
243 people are currently reading
1744 people want to read
About the author
C.E. Murphy
97 books1,795 followersCE Murphy began writing around age six, when she submitted three poems to a school publication. The teacher producing the magazine selected (inevitably) the one she thought was by far the worst, but also told her–a six year old kid–to keep writing, which she has. She has also held the usual grab-bag of jobs usually seen in an authorial biography, including public library volunteer (at ages 9 and 10; it’s clear she was doomed to a career involving books), archival assistant, cannery worker, and web designer. Writing books is better.
She was born and raised in Alaska, and now lives with her family in her ancestral homeland of Ireland.
She also writes paranormal romance as Murphy Lawless and cozy mysteries as Catie Murphy.
She was born and raised in Alaska, and now lives with her family in her ancestral homeland of Ireland.
She also writes paranormal romance as Murphy Lawless and cozy mysteries as Catie Murphy.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 336 reviews
January 24, 2018
Not bad.
Not as good as the first one, but still interesting. I absolutely love the main character, she has an amazing sense of humor (sarcastic and ironic, just how I like it).
The story was a bit long and static, but worth reading if you liked the first book.
Not as good as the first one, but still interesting. I absolutely love the main character, she has an amazing sense of humor (sarcastic and ironic, just how I like it).
The story was a bit long and static, but worth reading if you liked the first book.
August 15, 2011
Murphy tried to write one of those stories where nothing is as it seems, and then a big revelation at the end changes everything. She failed. Hard.
Imagine watching The sixth sense with Bruce Willis's character looking like Casper the friendly ghost; or if you still want him to be Bruce Willis instead of some cheap CGI, how about trying to picture him walking through solid objects and winking in and out of view in the middle of a scene without any of the characters acknowledging the oddity of normal person doing that. Then, after two hours of movie and a considerably less amount of hair from all the head-scratching, the big revelation comes. *gasp* He's dead! He's a ghost! OMG, how didn't we see it?! Hmm… no. Just no.
The reason it worked for The sixth sense was that it wasn't so painfully obvious from the very beginning. Sure, observant people could put things together with a little guesswork, but it was still subtle enough to understand why the characters weren't so quick on the uptake. This is not the case in Thunderbird Falls.
But I'm getting ahead of myself. This is bad, but I'm guessing it only would have taken my rating down to two stars. The problem is that it built on top of another pet peeve of mine: The reset button.
The events in the first book happens in the course of three days or so. At the beginning, the MC didn't know anything about her powers and by the end of the book she had to be able to wield them well enough to defeat a god. The kicker here is that for her powers to work, she needs to believe in them, to trust them. I thought that all the struggle to go from a non-believer to a powerful (albeit untrained) shaman by the end of the book was handled well and I liked how much the character had evolved. I was hoping that in this one she would start working to remedy the "untrained" part of her description since it was obvious that there was a lot to learn and it seemed a good direction to take the series.
Instead, I started this book and was surprised to find a completely different Joanne Walker than the one we left in the first book. The reset button had been pressed. Some authors seem to realize that they advanced their characters a little bit too far outside their comfort zones so, instead of dealing with it, they just recklessly backpedal with no regard for how stupid the characters will look.
In this case, six months have passed and, out of the blue, Joanne seemed to have decided not to believe anything that happened to her. It doesn't matter that she still uses her powers on a daily basis, speaking to spirit animals and healing people. She goes right back to not believing right after those things. It doesn't matter that she has perfect recollection of fighting a god, having been run through with a sword, healed herself and all those other things that happen in the first book. It's like reading someone with multiple personalities, only not in a fun way, just annoying.
It was the combination of these two very big problems that took the rating down to one star.
Well, but how exactly were these two things combined? Like this:
Every time her spirit guide tries to talk her into exploring her gift she does the next best thing to sticking fingers in her ears, closing her eyes and screaming "lala-lalala." It doesn't matter that the guy is trying to talk her into healing people and saving lives with no ill effects to her or others. She still chooses not even trying.
Then she does something foolish (of course she does! After all, she refused to learn anything to prevent this sort of thing), her spirit guide disappears and a "teacher" (that nobody knows or asks for) appears. This new teacher is asking her increasingly weirder and darker things, but now she suddenly decides to take a leap of faith and stop questioning everything and just doing what she's told: Blood sacrifice? Sure. Setting myself on fire for the greater good? No problem! Killing a pregnant woman by stabbing a knife in her belly? Hmmm… I have my doubts but I'm listening. What?!
Seriously, it took a lot of things going wrong for her to start even questioning what they were doing. But again it was like reading someone with multiple personalities. These rituals and other shenanigans were performed at night, a time where Joanne didn't appear to have any qualms about the effects of their actions. She seemed to wholeheartedly agree with what they were doing. Then, during the day, the results she had worked so hard to achieve the previous night freaked her out and she seemed opposed to them, even trying to fix them. But as soon as night fell again, she would happily start to work on the next phase of the plan like everything was peachy. I would like to say that this was part of the story, that somehow the night warped her mind in some subtle way making her do these things, but no, it was simple bad writing.
I can appreciate great vocabulary, proper grammar, nice metaphors, lyrical sentences and all that (read "nothing else pops to mind right now"), but for me, the most important parts of a book are the story and the characters. Give me a good idea with characters that make sense and I'll forgive you almost anything, but stomp all over your characters' personalities and intellect just so they can fit into what was a pretty flimsy idea to begin with and you won't get me to see past that. I don't care if some scenes were individually well-written or if a fight was cool, I will still dislike the book as a whole. In this case, with a passion.
I'll read the next one to see if this was only a misstep or if I should write off this series as "not for me."
Imagine watching The sixth sense with Bruce Willis's character looking like Casper the friendly ghost; or if you still want him to be Bruce Willis instead of some cheap CGI, how about trying to picture him walking through solid objects and winking in and out of view in the middle of a scene without any of the characters acknowledging the oddity of normal person doing that. Then, after two hours of movie and a considerably less amount of hair from all the head-scratching, the big revelation comes. *gasp* He's dead! He's a ghost! OMG, how didn't we see it?! Hmm… no. Just no.
The reason it worked for The sixth sense was that it wasn't so painfully obvious from the very beginning. Sure, observant people could put things together with a little guesswork, but it was still subtle enough to understand why the characters weren't so quick on the uptake. This is not the case in Thunderbird Falls.
But I'm getting ahead of myself. This is bad, but I'm guessing it only would have taken my rating down to two stars. The problem is that it built on top of another pet peeve of mine: The reset button.
The events in the first book happens in the course of three days or so. At the beginning, the MC didn't know anything about her powers and by the end of the book she had to be able to wield them well enough to defeat a god. The kicker here is that for her powers to work, she needs to believe in them, to trust them. I thought that all the struggle to go from a non-believer to a powerful (albeit untrained) shaman by the end of the book was handled well and I liked how much the character had evolved. I was hoping that in this one she would start working to remedy the "untrained" part of her description since it was obvious that there was a lot to learn and it seemed a good direction to take the series.
Instead, I started this book and was surprised to find a completely different Joanne Walker than the one we left in the first book. The reset button had been pressed. Some authors seem to realize that they advanced their characters a little bit too far outside their comfort zones so, instead of dealing with it, they just recklessly backpedal with no regard for how stupid the characters will look.
In this case, six months have passed and, out of the blue, Joanne seemed to have decided not to believe anything that happened to her. It doesn't matter that she still uses her powers on a daily basis, speaking to spirit animals and healing people. She goes right back to not believing right after those things. It doesn't matter that she has perfect recollection of fighting a god, having been run through with a sword, healed herself and all those other things that happen in the first book. It's like reading someone with multiple personalities, only not in a fun way, just annoying.
It was the combination of these two very big problems that took the rating down to one star.
Well, but how exactly were these two things combined? Like this:
Every time her spirit guide tries to talk her into exploring her gift she does the next best thing to sticking fingers in her ears, closing her eyes and screaming "lala-lalala." It doesn't matter that the guy is trying to talk her into healing people and saving lives with no ill effects to her or others. She still chooses not even trying.
Then she does something foolish (of course she does! After all, she refused to learn anything to prevent this sort of thing), her spirit guide disappears and a "teacher" (that nobody knows or asks for) appears. This new teacher is asking her increasingly weirder and darker things, but now she suddenly decides to take a leap of faith and stop questioning everything and just doing what she's told: Blood sacrifice? Sure. Setting myself on fire for the greater good? No problem! Killing a pregnant woman by stabbing a knife in her belly? Hmmm… I have my doubts but I'm listening. What?!
Seriously, it took a lot of things going wrong for her to start even questioning what they were doing. But again it was like reading someone with multiple personalities. These rituals and other shenanigans were performed at night, a time where Joanne didn't appear to have any qualms about the effects of their actions. She seemed to wholeheartedly agree with what they were doing. Then, during the day, the results she had worked so hard to achieve the previous night freaked her out and she seemed opposed to them, even trying to fix them. But as soon as night fell again, she would happily start to work on the next phase of the plan like everything was peachy. I would like to say that this was part of the story, that somehow the night warped her mind in some subtle way making her do these things, but no, it was simple bad writing.
I can appreciate great vocabulary, proper grammar, nice metaphors, lyrical sentences and all that (read "nothing else pops to mind right now"), but for me, the most important parts of a book are the story and the characters. Give me a good idea with characters that make sense and I'll forgive you almost anything, but stomp all over your characters' personalities and intellect just so they can fit into what was a pretty flimsy idea to begin with and you won't get me to see past that. I don't care if some scenes were individually well-written or if a fight was cool, I will still dislike the book as a whole. In this case, with a passion.
I'll read the next one to see if this was only a misstep or if I should write off this series as "not for me."
December 11, 2010
I'm continuing to struggle with reading this book. The main character is so flawed, I find it hard to be sympathetic to her, although it could be because her character is inconsistent. At one moment, she is wanting to use her power to heal, at another supposedly afraid to acknowledge it exists. If she is scared of it/ refuses to acknowledge it, why does she keep doing things like looking in the spirit realm for someone who recently died? It's also surprising that instead of believing her teachers, she researches on the internet. Perhaps I am like the potential love interest and supervisor Morrison, who is irritated with her because she "fell into" something we feel passionately about, and she doesn't seem to care about the responsibility. In fact, many of her general comments in the beginning are high-school level snark--I'm just not buying into her character as a professional adult woman.
As a child of police officers, I do have trouble believing some of the dynamics in the department. A cross-dressing male cop who is out to his collegues and wears nail polish at work? Highly unlikely, even in Seattle. Then there's the way she "falls into" the coven. I have trouble believing any police officer wouldn't have a few more basic questions... like coven for what? How long? Etc. Instead, she's involved in a ceremony within minutes of meeting them--and this is the same Joanne that refuses to learn from her spirit guide. From both professional and spiritual standpoints, her actions don't make sense.
The premise is an unusual one; this is the first book I've read that involves shamanism and Native Americans in the urban fantasy. Her supporting cast is well done as well, and some of the dialogue snappy, so I will probably check out the next in series. This is definitely a library-borrow book, and not one that will ever make it to my extensive bookshelves.
As a child of police officers, I do have trouble believing some of the dynamics in the department. A cross-dressing male cop who is out to his collegues and wears nail polish at work? Highly unlikely, even in Seattle. Then there's the way she "falls into" the coven. I have trouble believing any police officer wouldn't have a few more basic questions... like coven for what? How long? Etc. Instead, she's involved in a ceremony within minutes of meeting them--and this is the same Joanne that refuses to learn from her spirit guide. From both professional and spiritual standpoints, her actions don't make sense.
The premise is an unusual one; this is the first book I've read that involves shamanism and Native Americans in the urban fantasy. Her supporting cast is well done as well, and some of the dialogue snappy, so I will probably check out the next in series. This is definitely a library-borrow book, and not one that will ever make it to my extensive bookshelves.
December 27, 2008
The first book in this series was not especially fascinating, but because I liked the author's Gargoyle series, I wanted to give it a second chance. I shouldn't have. The entire premise of this book is that Joanne Walker is a dumbass and doesn't know what she is doing. In fact, she has to be so incredibly stupid because EVERY sign points to her being set up and doing a BAD thing. But she doesn't see it. It is outrageously annoying. In the final chapter when she does realize that she has been played for a fool, you are so disgusted with her that you almost wish she would fail and die.
The author has no idea what to do with this series. She gives Joanne a sidekick of a 73-year old man, but then she has Joanne talk about how hot the old man is and what great legs he has and when they meet in his spirit garden, OH MY....kinda but then she wimps out. Instead of breaking an age taboo (I mean Joanne even mentions Katherine Zeta Jones and Michael Douglas as May-Sept. examples) and really investigating that relationship and making something meaningful and real of it, she drops it. She also is very coy about Joanne's relationship with her boss. Does she like him? Does she not? Does he? Does he not? Honestly! Just shoot me. Actually, just shoot Joanne and put this annoying series out of its misery. Joanne is incapable of a sustained emotional connection to anyone in the book and therefore the book suffers and the reader is left not caring about anyone.
The author has no idea what to do with this series. She gives Joanne a sidekick of a 73-year old man, but then she has Joanne talk about how hot the old man is and what great legs he has and when they meet in his spirit garden, OH MY....kinda but then she wimps out. Instead of breaking an age taboo (I mean Joanne even mentions Katherine Zeta Jones and Michael Douglas as May-Sept. examples) and really investigating that relationship and making something meaningful and real of it, she drops it. She also is very coy about Joanne's relationship with her boss. Does she like him? Does she not? Does he? Does he not? Honestly! Just shoot me. Actually, just shoot Joanne and put this annoying series out of its misery. Joanne is incapable of a sustained emotional connection to anyone in the book and therefore the book suffers and the reader is left not caring about anyone.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 13, 2011
Joanne Walker, aka Siobhan Walkingstick, is back in the second installment of The Walker Papers. Unfortunately, the force of her personality and the awesome cast of secondary characters introduced in Urban Shaman and back in this installment isn't quite enough to put Thunderbird Falls on my "must not be missed" list.
There's good stuff here, most significantly the growing emotional tension between Joanne and Captain Michael Morrison. I swear, I just love every second they're in each others' company. There's real magic sparking between the two of them and it's very patiently and subtly drawn. I adore Gary - and there's a comforting sense of continuity in the faux-familial bond between them. It's nice to see two characters who genuinely adore one another like they do and not have it be in any way romantic. Billy Holliday is back, too, and while not quite as out there as he was in the first book, he's definitely one of the most joyously unique characters I've read in a book in a long time. And I love Joanne's internal monologue. She's sarcastic and self-deprecating and her observations often make me chuckle.
What I don't love, though, is that despite the impressive goings on in Urban Shaman and all the challenges Joanne Walker triumphs over there, she seems to have not only stagnated in her shamanic development, she's actually regressed and is back to that annoying "oh no, I don't want to be Shaman" whining. It doesn't stop her from using her abilities, it just makes every time she does turn into a paragraph about why she doesn't want to. That got old in the first book. To have it carry over into this one after everything she accomplished previously is tedious. I think there may have been some progress in that regard by the end of Thunderbird Falls, but I'm not sure how much.
Then there's the central plot. Joanne stumbles across a dead body and ends up mixed up in coven with dubious motives and questionable sanity. She loses Coyote in there somewhere, and I have no idea why or how. She sure doesn't seem at all bothered by it, despite the fact that there are things going on around her that point to the fact that her fight against Cerrunos in Urban Shaman threw things severely out of whack in the astral realm and it's bleeding over into this one (or visa versa...not totally clear on that) and she's not got the first clue how to fix it. Seattle is sweltering and drought stricken, nature is out of balance, and it looks like it might be all Joanne's fault. And nothing in any of that is anywhere near as compelling or dangerous as anything in Urban Shaman. Until the last quarter of the book, in fact, there's nothing even alluding to daunting, then the last quarter was a mishmash of big reveals and final showdowns that weren't very clearly written. Not to mention that by that point I can't say I cared that much about it, however it concluded.
I'm going to give Coyote Dreams a try because the parts I did like in this book I liked very, very much. I still think C.E. Murphy has a unique gift for writing secondary and ancillary characters, and I truly like Joanne when she's not going the "poor me" route. Plus, I've just got to see what develops between her and Morrison. I just hope for a cleaner, less meandering, tauter plot.
~*~*~*~
Reviewed for One Good Book Deserves Another.
There's good stuff here, most significantly the growing emotional tension between Joanne and Captain Michael Morrison. I swear, I just love every second they're in each others' company. There's real magic sparking between the two of them and it's very patiently and subtly drawn. I adore Gary - and there's a comforting sense of continuity in the faux-familial bond between them. It's nice to see two characters who genuinely adore one another like they do and not have it be in any way romantic. Billy Holliday is back, too, and while not quite as out there as he was in the first book, he's definitely one of the most joyously unique characters I've read in a book in a long time. And I love Joanne's internal monologue. She's sarcastic and self-deprecating and her observations often make me chuckle.
What I don't love, though, is that despite the impressive goings on in Urban Shaman and all the challenges Joanne Walker triumphs over there, she seems to have not only stagnated in her shamanic development, she's actually regressed and is back to that annoying "oh no, I don't want to be Shaman" whining. It doesn't stop her from using her abilities, it just makes every time she does turn into a paragraph about why she doesn't want to. That got old in the first book. To have it carry over into this one after everything she accomplished previously is tedious. I think there may have been some progress in that regard by the end of Thunderbird Falls, but I'm not sure how much.
Then there's the central plot. Joanne stumbles across a dead body and ends up mixed up in coven with dubious motives and questionable sanity. She loses Coyote in there somewhere, and I have no idea why or how. She sure doesn't seem at all bothered by it, despite the fact that there are things going on around her that point to the fact that her fight against Cerrunos in Urban Shaman threw things severely out of whack in the astral realm and it's bleeding over into this one (or visa versa...not totally clear on that) and she's not got the first clue how to fix it. Seattle is sweltering and drought stricken, nature is out of balance, and it looks like it might be all Joanne's fault. And nothing in any of that is anywhere near as compelling or dangerous as anything in Urban Shaman. Until the last quarter of the book, in fact, there's nothing even alluding to daunting, then the last quarter was a mishmash of big reveals and final showdowns that weren't very clearly written. Not to mention that by that point I can't say I cared that much about it, however it concluded.
I'm going to give Coyote Dreams a try because the parts I did like in this book I liked very, very much. I still think C.E. Murphy has a unique gift for writing secondary and ancillary characters, and I truly like Joanne when she's not going the "poor me" route. Plus, I've just got to see what develops between her and Morrison. I just hope for a cleaner, less meandering, tauter plot.
~*~*~*~
Reviewed for One Good Book Deserves Another.
March 14, 2008
Again, a whole stack of friends are telling me to read this series. I tell them to read or see all sorts of crap, so I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt.
This was a definite drop back from the pretty-good first book (Urban Shaman). Our heroine, forced in the first book into awakening latent shamanic powers and now trying not to use them, is told to find a teacher as well as to fix the large climate shift she generated in the first book. Meanwhile, there will be at least one mystery for her to solve in her police duties. Sounds like a fine set-up for a book.
Unfortunately, it's handled poorly. Not badly enough that I put it down, but I was impatient to finish it given the many good books I have waiting to be read.
First, the "teacher" plot is pretty awful. This is another case of an author chickening out and having a strong-willed heroine do something against her will for no reason at all. Joanne has standards and shows her backbone when pushed; when Judy (the teacher) appears she gives Joanne no reason to like--much less trust--her and basically bullies her way into Joanne's life. Joanne takes it and ignores the out-of-character behavior. I really hate this in a story; it's auctorial laziness and cowardice.
The "clean up your mess" plot comprises the bulk of the book. It's so-so, but better than the teaching plot. Joanne works with a coven of witches to contact and manifest a spirit that will help them. Joanne does some diligence on the spirit and the group, at least, unlike on the teacher. The real problem with this storyline is the limpness of it. Every night she goes and does a ritual with them, with the rituals becoming progressively weirder. Some of the rituals are very well-told (the second, out in a park, is quite nice), but they have limited tension until the climax of the book.
The police mystery is basically nonexistent. Unfortunately, this means that her boss is also mostly missing, leaving her to think about him a lot (and become uncomfortable with how much she thinks about him, furthering the tension between the two), but would you rather read a scene with two characters or one with one character thinking about the other? They aren't even detailed fantasies; they're of the "if he were here he'd yell at me" sort.
The other saving-grace character, Gary the Cabbie, is only in and out of the story occasionally (for a good plot reason that is completely ruined by a weak attempt to tie it in to the rest of the story at the end). With both Morrison and Gary gone, we're left with Joanne trying to play off throw-away characters with no personality. It's not successful.
Some half-hearted attempt to tie the story in to the Seattle environmental protests and just maybe with an ecological agenda appear in a very small frame story bookending the plot. That and constant references to events in a short story in some anthology somewhere (I hadn't read it)[1] keep the book from feeling like it's whole.
I'll read the third, mostly because my friends handed me at least that many. Hopefully this is the low point of the series.
1 - The story is "Banshee Cries" and appears in Winter Moon. Unfortunately, I couldn't find this information anywhere in Thunderbird Falls frontmatter.
This was a definite drop back from the pretty-good first book (Urban Shaman). Our heroine, forced in the first book into awakening latent shamanic powers and now trying not to use them, is told to find a teacher as well as to fix the large climate shift she generated in the first book. Meanwhile, there will be at least one mystery for her to solve in her police duties. Sounds like a fine set-up for a book.
Unfortunately, it's handled poorly. Not badly enough that I put it down, but I was impatient to finish it given the many good books I have waiting to be read.
First, the "teacher" plot is pretty awful. This is another case of an author chickening out and having a strong-willed heroine do something against her will for no reason at all. Joanne has standards and shows her backbone when pushed; when Judy (the teacher) appears she gives Joanne no reason to like--much less trust--her and basically bullies her way into Joanne's life. Joanne takes it and ignores the out-of-character behavior. I really hate this in a story; it's auctorial laziness and cowardice.
The "clean up your mess" plot comprises the bulk of the book. It's so-so, but better than the teaching plot. Joanne works with a coven of witches to contact and manifest a spirit that will help them. Joanne does some diligence on the spirit and the group, at least, unlike on the teacher. The real problem with this storyline is the limpness of it. Every night she goes and does a ritual with them, with the rituals becoming progressively weirder. Some of the rituals are very well-told (the second, out in a park, is quite nice), but they have limited tension until the climax of the book.
The police mystery is basically nonexistent. Unfortunately, this means that her boss is also mostly missing, leaving her to think about him a lot (and become uncomfortable with how much she thinks about him, furthering the tension between the two), but would you rather read a scene with two characters or one with one character thinking about the other? They aren't even detailed fantasies; they're of the "if he were here he'd yell at me" sort.
The other saving-grace character, Gary the Cabbie, is only in and out of the story occasionally (for a good plot reason that is completely ruined by a weak attempt to tie it in to the rest of the story at the end). With both Morrison and Gary gone, we're left with Joanne trying to play off throw-away characters with no personality. It's not successful.
Some half-hearted attempt to tie the story in to the Seattle environmental protests and just maybe with an ecological agenda appear in a very small frame story bookending the plot. That and constant references to events in a short story in some anthology somewhere (I hadn't read it)[1] keep the book from feeling like it's whole.
I'll read the third, mostly because my friends handed me at least that many. Hopefully this is the low point of the series.
1 - The story is "Banshee Cries" and appears in Winter Moon. Unfortunately, I couldn't find this information anywhere in Thunderbird Falls frontmatter.
April 12, 2018
Love it! Xx
February 5, 2014
“Let me guess.” Was pretty much the only thoughts I had while reading Thunderbird Falls. OK, clearly not the only thoughts. But they were pretty much on replay the whole way through. Lot's of readers complained about how much Jo pisses and moans about her new powers. Which I'll talk about. My main complaint was how terribly predictable this book was.
Each new character, plot point, or anything introduced was so glaringly obvious I had this mental image of myself beating my head against a school desk! The fact that I had to forcibly sit myself down and finally just get finish this book killed this most of the enjoyment. The only reason I didn't simply walk away from Thunderbird Falls is the fact that I love Jo and I bought all of the books. All right, I really enjoyed the first one. Plus, Jo’s denial about her crush on Morrison . . .
Jo is great to follow in this book. She reminds me of myself on many levels. Talking out loud to myself. Check. No mind to mouth filter. Check. Car lover. Check. Shirks at the idea of huge cosmic responsibility. Check. Admittedly Jo immediately whining about how she doesn't want her new powers and her denial annoyed me. After everything in the last book she should know better. She's taking fencing lessons on the off chance that she might need to sword fight again. Why wouldn't she want to better herself on the magic playing field? That's where the battles are really going to take place. Then a dear book friend of mine stated that denial is the only thing that keeps us sane sometimes. Then there's Jo's dark and sad past. It clicked. Honestly in Jo’s place I would not want those powers and would run too.
In the end the real saving point of the book isn't that everyone is asking for Jo to want her powers, but to accept her place with them and to help. Because denial does not make the problems go away. Another beautiful thing is that no one out right laughs at Jo for her beliefs and it actually shows a Seattle full of a lot of people willing to accept and believe in the magical side of the world. While I find it highly unlikely, it is nice. At some point I'm sure Jo, and readers, will have to deal with some prejudices about it later. This book is a necessary step for character development, a lesson that hits close to home that Jo needs. It's just a shame the book had to be so freaking predictable.
Sexual Content: Sexual humor.
2/5- Average/disappointing, library check-out
Originally reviewed at Book Whispers.
Each new character, plot point, or anything introduced was so glaringly obvious I had this mental image of myself beating my head against a school desk! The fact that I had to forcibly sit myself down and finally just get finish this book killed this most of the enjoyment. The only reason I didn't simply walk away from Thunderbird Falls is the fact that I love Jo and I bought all of the books. All right, I really enjoyed the first one. Plus, Jo’s denial about her crush on Morrison . . .
Jo is great to follow in this book. She reminds me of myself on many levels. Talking out loud to myself. Check. No mind to mouth filter. Check. Car lover. Check. Shirks at the idea of huge cosmic responsibility. Check. Admittedly Jo immediately whining about how she doesn't want her new powers and her denial annoyed me. After everything in the last book she should know better. She's taking fencing lessons on the off chance that she might need to sword fight again. Why wouldn't she want to better herself on the magic playing field? That's where the battles are really going to take place. Then a dear book friend of mine stated that denial is the only thing that keeps us sane sometimes. Then there's Jo's dark and sad past. It clicked. Honestly in Jo’s place I would not want those powers and would run too.
In the end the real saving point of the book isn't that everyone is asking for Jo to want her powers, but to accept her place with them and to help. Because denial does not make the problems go away. Another beautiful thing is that no one out right laughs at Jo for her beliefs and it actually shows a Seattle full of a lot of people willing to accept and believe in the magical side of the world. While I find it highly unlikely, it is nice. At some point I'm sure Jo, and readers, will have to deal with some prejudices about it later. This book is a necessary step for character development, a lesson that hits close to home that Jo needs. It's just a shame the book had to be so freaking predictable.
Sexual Content: Sexual humor.
2/5- Average/disappointing, library check-out
Originally reviewed at Book Whispers.
November 22, 2018
Murphy told an interesting story with very fun writing, and exceptional characters. I love the dynamic between Joanne and the central characters. On character development and interaction alone I'd give this book 4 and 1/2 stars.
The rest of it was a train wreck. I spent half of the story amazed at Joanne's naivete, and the other half wanting to strangle her. She ignores most of what she should be paying attention to, and pretty much believes everything anyone tells her despite how unlikely it was.
She pulls it out in the end. But I came away mostly wanting to rub her face in her own stupidity.
The rest of it was a train wreck. I spent half of the story amazed at Joanne's naivete, and the other half wanting to strangle her. She ignores most of what she should be paying attention to, and pretty much believes everything anyone tells her despite how unlikely it was.
She pulls it out in the end. But I came away mostly wanting to rub her face in her own stupidity.
November 26, 2018
2.5 Stars
• I wanted to bitch slap the fuck out of Joanne Walker from start to finish
• Which was extremely painful since I really really liked her in Book #1
• Hubba Hubba Morrison ♥
• Daymn son Gary ♥
• We need wayyy more Morrison & Gary
• We also need the original Joanne back. The not TSTL Level 9000 one
The book:
*Book #3, please, please be better*
• I wanted to bitch slap the fuck out of Joanne Walker from start to finish
• Which was extremely painful since I really really liked her in Book #1
• Hubba Hubba Morrison ♥
• Daymn son Gary ♥
• We need wayyy more Morrison & Gary
• We also need the original Joanne back. The not TSTL Level 9000 one
The book:
The truth was I wanted my cake and to eat it, too. I didn’t want to admit any of this shamanic nonsense was real, but I also wanted to be able to snap my fingers and make it so. @18%
*Book #3, please, please be better*
March 12, 2019
Vampires, Shifters, and Zombies bring ‘em on!
Fairies, mythological creatures, and Gods alas, I pass.
C.E. Murphy is a solid writer I just don’t jibe with her subject matter.
Fairies, mythological creatures, and Gods alas, I pass.
C.E. Murphy is a solid writer I just don’t jibe with her subject matter.
March 21, 2023
Why are we backtracking?
Why does Joanne keep questioning her power and running from it?
Why does she keep a sexualizing a 70 year old man?
Why does Joanne keep questioning her power and running from it?
Why does she keep a sexualizing a 70 year old man?
April 4, 2013
This is the second book in the Walker Papers series and it finds our heroine, Joanne, a few months out from the events of the first book. With the adrenaline of those events having worn off, Joanne has become more reluctant to use her shamanic abilities and to take on the responsibilities that go with it. As a result, she goes about tripping through a series of mistakes and errors in judgement in this installment. It turns out that the amount of power Joanne used in book one was not without consequences and while her intentions are good as she sets about trying to set things right, the way to do that may not be as clear cut as she would like.
Joanne remains a likeable character, a recent, firm non-believer who has had her entire worldview turned on its ear in a matter of days, and who continues to struggle with what that now means for life going forward. I find myself quite liking the secondary characters in this series. Captain Morrison, Joanne's boss, was more of a presence in this book and I found myself looking forward to the next Morrison/Joanne scene in the book as I was reading. Romance still isn't a big deal in this book but it's becoming clear that Joanne may be harboring a serious crush on her boss - though she would never admit that to herself. Her thoughts often turn to him as she wonders what he would say or think about this or that.
I also enjoyed reading Joanne's interactions with Gary. No love triangle forming here (thank goodness) as Gary is the 73 year old cab driver that Joanne met in book one. I loved Gary in the first book so I'm pleased that it seems he will be sticking around as Joanne's mentor/father-figure/sidekick/friend.
I still wish that the author would cut back on the amount of spirit/astral trips since it seems that Joanne spends as much time in the spirit world as she does in the real world but, given that she's a shaman, it makes sense. Overall I still enjoyed the book. I like Joanne enough to be willing to follow her on her misadventures as she discovers what it truly means to be a shaman...to be a healer, especially since it seems that the one who may need the most healing is herself. Plus, I'm intrigued enough by her interactions with Morrison to want to see if her crush is ever realized.
Joanne remains a likeable character, a recent, firm non-believer who has had her entire worldview turned on its ear in a matter of days, and who continues to struggle with what that now means for life going forward. I find myself quite liking the secondary characters in this series. Captain Morrison, Joanne's boss, was more of a presence in this book and I found myself looking forward to the next Morrison/Joanne scene in the book as I was reading. Romance still isn't a big deal in this book but it's becoming clear that Joanne may be harboring a serious crush on her boss - though she would never admit that to herself. Her thoughts often turn to him as she wonders what he would say or think about this or that.
I also enjoyed reading Joanne's interactions with Gary. No love triangle forming here (thank goodness) as Gary is the 73 year old cab driver that Joanne met in book one. I loved Gary in the first book so I'm pleased that it seems he will be sticking around as Joanne's mentor/father-figure/sidekick/friend.
I still wish that the author would cut back on the amount of spirit/astral trips since it seems that Joanne spends as much time in the spirit world as she does in the real world but, given that she's a shaman, it makes sense. Overall I still enjoyed the book. I like Joanne enough to be willing to follow her on her misadventures as she discovers what it truly means to be a shaman...to be a healer, especially since it seems that the one who may need the most healing is herself. Plus, I'm intrigued enough by her interactions with Morrison to want to see if her crush is ever realized.
October 19, 2016
Although I like this main character for a lot of reasons, C.E. Murphy's descriptions of the magic Joanne does leaves me feeling confused and unsatisfied. It's a lot of talk about energy and fire and force, and I never get what happened after the big scene is done. This is the second book of hers I've read and I think I'll pass on the rest of the series. The Joanne, Morrison, and Gary characters are so strong that I feel very sad to leave them behind.
ETA in 2016 - well, I kept with the series. It gets better and better!
ETA in 2016 - well, I kept with the series. It gets better and better!
January 28, 2018
Eh, maybe 3.5. I'm not ready to give up on this series entirely, but I really wasn't impressed with this book. :/
April 17, 2019
I really struggled with this one. I'm not sure if it was just me not meshing with the story or the story itself but it seemed so long and drawn out. There were some good parts - hence the 3 star rating, but overall I'm not convinced I'll read on in this series.
Joanne is new to her Shamanic powers and so not happy about it. If there has ever been a more reluctant character to their newly minted gift I don't know of them. She doesn't take it very seriously and kind of half-heartedly goes about learning and studying the craft. This ends her up in a huge mess in this book and I'm hoping in the next ones she'll have a little more care. This is why I'm not completely sure yet on if I read on or not. I mean She's witty and I find super funny. But it made me crazy how she's so lazy and disrespectful about her craft.
The peripheral characters are pretty great but there is so many secrets and things left unsaid. It just gets annoying. I really wish the simmering heat between Joanne and Captain Morrison would go somewhere. At this point it's just causing tension in the reader.
The story line itself has so much potential. The premise is interesting and could really hold your attention if it wasn't for so many other subplots going on. They take away from the actual story and honestly become painful to read. I found myself thinking "spit it out already. Yeesh!" If the main story itself had the focus and just a little bit of background and personal growth for Joanne it would be fantastic.
Joanne is new to her Shamanic powers and so not happy about it. If there has ever been a more reluctant character to their newly minted gift I don't know of them. She doesn't take it very seriously and kind of half-heartedly goes about learning and studying the craft. This ends her up in a huge mess in this book and I'm hoping in the next ones she'll have a little more care. This is why I'm not completely sure yet on if I read on or not. I mean She's witty and I find super funny. But it made me crazy how she's so lazy and disrespectful about her craft.
The peripheral characters are pretty great but there is so many secrets and things left unsaid. It just gets annoying. I really wish the simmering heat between Joanne and Captain Morrison would go somewhere. At this point it's just causing tension in the reader.
The story line itself has so much potential. The premise is interesting and could really hold your attention if it wasn't for so many other subplots going on. They take away from the actual story and honestly become painful to read. I found myself thinking "spit it out already. Yeesh!" If the main story itself had the focus and just a little bit of background and personal growth for Joanne it would be fantastic.
February 10, 2019
I just got so annoyed reading this book. I thought I liked the first one ok, but the references in this book so didn't make sense to me, it seemed like I was reading an entirely different character.
It got so much that I kind of convinced myself I must not have really read the first book, and did a skim-through of it to make sure that I had!
JoAnne is just entirely aggravating. She knows she is in over her head, but goes around being sarcastic and acting like a dumbass. She has all sorts of things suddenly fall into her lap, and even though she is a cop, instead of being suspicious she instead decides everything is going right for a change.
And a cop meeting up with a coven and just deciding to do spells with them to bring back an ancient force? Just not believable. Sort of an especially dumb Mary Sue. Reminded me of the dumb girl from the Fever series I disliked so much, but with less sex.
It got so much that I kind of convinced myself I must not have really read the first book, and did a skim-through of it to make sure that I had!
JoAnne is just entirely aggravating. She knows she is in over her head, but goes around being sarcastic and acting like a dumbass. She has all sorts of things suddenly fall into her lap, and even though she is a cop, instead of being suspicious she instead decides everything is going right for a change.
And a cop meeting up with a coven and just deciding to do spells with them to bring back an ancient force? Just not believable. Sort of an especially dumb Mary Sue. Reminded me of the dumb girl from the Fever series I disliked so much, but with less sex.
July 27, 2018
2.0 - 2.5 ***
This is the second book in the Walker Papers series and a RU audio book. I wasn't as entertained with this book. Joanne is supposed to be a smart cop but she fails miserably. She's too trusting and doesn't question other's intentions. She bordered on tstl. As in the first book Joanne gets knocked around a good bit but keeps on going all the while internally complaining about how tired she is. She's attracted to her Captain and he's attracted to her yet they dance around each other like they're in middle school.
The narrator is good but not enough for me to continue.
This is the second book in the Walker Papers series and a RU audio book. I wasn't as entertained with this book. Joanne is supposed to be a smart cop but she fails miserably. She's too trusting and doesn't question other's intentions. She bordered on tstl. As in the first book Joanne gets knocked around a good bit but keeps on going all the while internally complaining about how tired she is. She's attracted to her Captain and he's attracted to her yet they dance around each other like they're in middle school.
The narrator is good but not enough for me to continue.
May 9, 2018
I have exactly zero idea about what happened in this book but I effing love the characters so much I don’t care.
July 13, 2014
Thunderbird Falls is the second book in the Walker Papers series. It picks up a few months after the momentous events of the first novel and we find Joanna, on the job, walking the beat and trying to use her magic as little as possible. Seattle, after have a long, cold winter, is in the midst of an extraordinary heatwave. When Joanna finds a dead girl in the shower at her the university gym, she goes on an astral 'walk' to see if she can find some answers. Instead, what she finds is a new teacher, Judy, who has come to help Joanna learn to use her magic. It turns out that after defeating Cernnunos, Joanna put everything metaphysically out of whack - which is why Seattle has been experiencing such strange weather - and she's supposed to help a local covenin bringing Virissong, a long banished spirit, back to Seattle to bring magic back into the world and set things right. The problem is, Joanna doesn't know if she can trust them, and Coyote, her spirit guide seems to have gone A.W.O.L.
This book is a solid continuation to the series. It wasn't as action packed as the first, but it still had a lot of the same elements that made Urban Shaman a good book. First, the heroine Joanne, is an interesting character. I like how she is portrayed as a basically normal person just trying to do her job and learn to accept her shaman status. Second, the supporting characters are great. I was glad to see both Gary and Billie back. Third, I like the tension between Joanna and her boss Morrison. There is definitely something developing between those two. Joanna can't seem to stop thinking about him and he, seem to be overly interested in what goes on with her. They seem to have a real like/hate relationship going right now. There are times when you could almost cut the tension between the two with a knife. Will it develop into more? I guess I'll have to read the next book to find out.
The main complaint I have about this book is that Murphy seems to have gotten a bit carried away with the metaphysical, acid-trip descriptions of the otherworld. There were times when I completely lost touch with the narrative because of the abstract nature of the descriptions and I found myself skimming. While I'm usually okay with abstract things, there were times that I think the mind-trippy descriptions went a bit overboard and were completely unnecessary to the overall plot.
Overall though, the negatives don't outweigh the positives. This is a solid series and I'm looking forward to the next book.
This book is a solid continuation to the series. It wasn't as action packed as the first, but it still had a lot of the same elements that made Urban Shaman a good book. First, the heroine Joanne, is an interesting character. I like how she is portrayed as a basically normal person just trying to do her job and learn to accept her shaman status. Second, the supporting characters are great. I was glad to see both Gary and Billie back. Third, I like the tension between Joanna and her boss Morrison. There is definitely something developing between those two. Joanna can't seem to stop thinking about him and he, seem to be overly interested in what goes on with her. They seem to have a real like/hate relationship going right now. There are times when you could almost cut the tension between the two with a knife. Will it develop into more? I guess I'll have to read the next book to find out.
The main complaint I have about this book is that Murphy seems to have gotten a bit carried away with the metaphysical, acid-trip descriptions of the otherworld. There were times when I completely lost touch with the narrative because of the abstract nature of the descriptions and I found myself skimming. While I'm usually okay with abstract things, there were times that I think the mind-trippy descriptions went a bit overboard and were completely unnecessary to the overall plot.
Overall though, the negatives don't outweigh the positives. This is a solid series and I'm looking forward to the next book.
January 13, 2012
I rated this a 3 stars because I felt it was much better written than the first one, and I liked it better. What kept me from liking it even more is that better writing notwithstanding, many of the same problems from the first book plague this one too.
The biggest problem is Joanne herself. In beginners' Spanish class, we learned a phrase: cabeza dura. Joanne tiene cabeza dura. That's the only explanation for how someone can be so dense, so incredibly stupid (her words, not mine. I just happen to fervently agree with her). Literally. Her denseness was not credible. At all. I saw this coming the moment it started! And I never see anything! You could see this coming from three million light years away!So if I caught it and she missed it, she is truly, and irredeemably dense! But then if she had caught it and refused to be a part of the whole coven foolishness, there wouldn't be story now, would there? It also doesn't help that I don't like Joanne very much. I liked her a bit better in this book, but her attitude, rudeness, and general childishness, along with her incredible denseness (especially the last two) doesn't make her a likeable character at all. But she is much better in this book, so there is still hope.
The other big problem was the story. Where did Coyote disappear to? That made no sense whatsoever and was another indication that this story's plot was weak. The only way to progress this story as far as it went was to have Coyote, who used to be (and is supposed to be) a constant presence in Joanne's life, vanish for no reason so this farce could take place. Smh.
Even so, like I said, I enjoyed this one quite a bit more than I did the first one. On to book 3 for me.
The biggest problem is Joanne herself. In beginners' Spanish class, we learned a phrase: cabeza dura. Joanne tiene cabeza dura. That's the only explanation for how someone can be so dense, so incredibly stupid (her words, not mine. I just happen to fervently agree with her). Literally. Her denseness was not credible. At all. I saw this coming the moment it started! And I never see anything! You could see this coming from three million light years away!So if I caught it and she missed it, she is truly, and irredeemably dense! But then if she had caught it and refused to be a part of the whole coven foolishness, there wouldn't be story now, would there? It also doesn't help that I don't like Joanne very much. I liked her a bit better in this book, but her attitude, rudeness, and general childishness, along with her incredible denseness (especially the last two) doesn't make her a likeable character at all. But she is much better in this book, so there is still hope.
The other big problem was the story. Where did Coyote disappear to? That made no sense whatsoever and was another indication that this story's plot was weak. The only way to progress this story as far as it went was to have Coyote, who used to be (and is supposed to be) a constant presence in Joanne's life, vanish for no reason so this farce could take place. Smh.
Even so, like I said, I enjoyed this one quite a bit more than I did the first one. On to book 3 for me.
February 27, 2011
Thunderbird Falls is a good story with poor execution. In this installment, Joanne Walker has to face her ambivalence with her new Shaman powers. She has not been studying her craft and her spirit guide, Coyote goes silent. However, a new guide, Judy shows up and begins teaching her how to use her power. While all of this occurs, her friend Gary the cabbie has a heart attack and is in the hospital trying to recover.
After finding a dead girl,Cassandra in a locker room shower Jo attemtps to discover what happened to her. Cassie's friends are in a coven and tell Jo that they have been communicating with the spirit, Virissong who will heal the damage to the earth (global warming). They ask for her help in bringing him back to this realm by performing magic. This is where everything goes all wrong.
As I stated earlier, I enjoyed the story but not the execution. I had three problems with the writing:
1) While the characters are incredible, they are not used to enhance the story. Only about 20% of the book is dialogue and interaction between characters. Character interactions make a book or break it for me.
2) 80% of the book is incessant internal dialogue or descriptions of the ethereal plane. Much of this was also repetitive.
3) The final battle scene is over 30 pages and is not exciting. It just keeps going on and on. I found myself saying, "Enough already, please!"
When I purchased the series, I bought books 1-5. I will finish them all; but, if they do not get better I will not go on from there. Sorry, Murphy this book was just o.k.
After finding a dead girl,Cassandra in a locker room shower Jo attemtps to discover what happened to her. Cassie's friends are in a coven and tell Jo that they have been communicating with the spirit, Virissong who will heal the damage to the earth (global warming). They ask for her help in bringing him back to this realm by performing magic. This is where everything goes all wrong.
As I stated earlier, I enjoyed the story but not the execution. I had three problems with the writing:
1) While the characters are incredible, they are not used to enhance the story. Only about 20% of the book is dialogue and interaction between characters. Character interactions make a book or break it for me.
2) 80% of the book is incessant internal dialogue or descriptions of the ethereal plane. Much of this was also repetitive.
3) The final battle scene is over 30 pages and is not exciting. It just keeps going on and on. I found myself saying, "Enough already, please!"
When I purchased the series, I bought books 1-5. I will finish them all; but, if they do not get better I will not go on from there. Sorry, Murphy this book was just o.k.
February 10, 2012
Re-read by audiobook. I also read the library paperback. I'm not liking this book as much as the first time, but I think that was because of the change in narrators. The first narrator was okay but this one made every man sound so marble-mouthed, slow talking, it was a little ridiculous. And speaking of ridiculous, I'm not exaggerating when I say that Joanne woke every morning after passing out and not knowing where she is. Every morning. Passing out is bad, so I'm thinking brain damage and not just magical overload. And since I'm on a complaining roll, Joanne is constantly tired. She was constantly tired in "Urban Shaman" but that made more sense. This time, even with her passing out and thereby getting some type of sleep, she complains about being tired all the time. There was another author who had her heroine always cold and wet with rain. This author seems to be on the constantly tired track. I'm going to listen to the 3rd book and hopefully Joanne will get some pep in her step and stop passing out. I'm sorry to say I'm moving this book down to 3 stars.
Previous review on 06/12/10.I think this series is getting better and better. I really love how awkward and funny Joanne is. I wish something more would be happening in her romance life, but maybe that would get in the way of the story. She's finally starting to use her shamanic powers which makes me look forward to reading book #3. Great series.
Previous review on 06/12/10.I think this series is getting better and better. I really love how awkward and funny Joanne is. I wish something more would be happening in her romance life, but maybe that would get in the way of the story. She's finally starting to use her shamanic powers which makes me look forward to reading book #3. Great series.
Read
October 21, 2007http://nhw.livejournal.com/769830.html[return][return]The heroine of Thunderbird Falls is a Seattle policewoman who turns out to have psychic powers, in an environment drawing substantially from Native American traditions, with a certain helping of Celtic lore and the author's own imagination. It is very difficult to convey such a setting without falling into the trap of being either too twee or too earnestly evangelical, and it is very much to the author's credit that she manages it; the dangers, both physical and psychic, to the narrator make it clear that this is very far from the fotherington-tomas "Hullo clouds hullo sky hullo sun etc" view of nature.[return][return]The plot, unfortunately, depends a bit on the heroine not asking certain important questions that occur to the reader (at least to this reader) fairly early on. OK, we are given good reasons why she doesn't think her situation through, but it's a nagging concern. Also, I was kind of hoping (this is the romantic in me) for a more definite resolution of the various sexual tensions surrounding our narrator's life. Having said that, I really do hope there is another book to follow, and that I somehow get hold of the earlier one.
September 29, 2013
This my first read by this author. I missed No. 1 (Urban Shaman) in the series but I think I'll go back and read it. Yes, this one is a little long but Joanne Walker (Siobhan Walkingstick) is a strong likable character. Her insecurities and lack of self confidence often seem to get in the way and she spends too much time second guessing what she should do. All in all, though I like her. Not pretty or feminine, she is strong, courageous and prefers being a mechanic to most other jobs. And, I like her boss, Captain Morrison, as well as her friend, Gary, the wise cab driver. There seems to be a strange attraction between Joanne and her boss, who while not certain he believes in this shaman stuff, keeps an open mind and keeps her on task. In short, he believes in her. On the other hand Joanne finds herself fighting demons she is tricked to bringing into the world. Seattle residents begin to believe in magic when they start seeing strange creatures wandering the streets and roaming the parks. How Joanne gets out of this entanglement is for readers to discover. Note that this author is imaginative, creative and writes well. Keep an eye on her work.
April 11, 2009
This installment of The Walker Papers was more confusing than the first. But I still enjoyed the cast of characters and the overall storyline. I felt that the writing could have been tighter, but with the amount of time Joanne spends in the Spirit World, many events are understandably abstract. Murphy draws heavily on the nature of Faith and of expectations and their impact on the world, making this a more heady and serious tale than Urban Shaman. But part of that somber feel comes from the fact that we can see the writing on the wall long before Joanne does. I expected better of her.
Gary doesn't feature very heavily in Joanne's adventures this time around. A fact that lessened my enjoyment as I realise that his presence infuses both the story and Joanne's life with comedy and joy. He's a stabilizing force and I look forward to his reactions and interactions with Joanne. And I admit, like Joanne, I have a bit of a crush on the big lug.
Still a good read, and I'll certainly pick up the next, Coyote Dreams.
Gary doesn't feature very heavily in Joanne's adventures this time around. A fact that lessened my enjoyment as I realise that his presence infuses both the story and Joanne's life with comedy and joy. He's a stabilizing force and I look forward to his reactions and interactions with Joanne. And I admit, like Joanne, I have a bit of a crush on the big lug.
Still a good read, and I'll certainly pick up the next, Coyote Dreams.
March 5, 2012
Well finally finished Thunderbird Falls (The Walker Papers, Book 2) and I will have to say by the end of the book I would give it a solid 4 Star rank, it continues the story of Joanne Walker and her coming to grips with her Shaman powers, this series is one where you have to grow with the heroine and at times its a bit frustrating for readers like me who want to just point a finger and all bad guys blow up. not gonna happen here but she gets a bit smarter (unlike Rachael in the Hollows) with each book and a bit stronger which makes my long term enjoyment more predictable. The only problems were a lot of mystical psycho babble pages (hence the 4 Star and not more) that I had to scan carefully since there is stuff you need to read in them, but it is kinda the price for understanding the thought process of Joanne. This series starts with a damn near 5 Star read with Urban Shaman (The Walker Papers, Book 1) and now is settling down for a long term series which I find very entertaining and hope to have a very long association with and many hours of reading enjoyment to come.
April 13, 2012
I like Joanne, even though she's just as likely to destroy the world while she tries to save it. She's an interesting character and we get to find out a little more about her as we go. I'm interested to see how things progress with Morrison and love her relationship with Gary.
While I thought I must have missed a book between this and the first of the series, I eventually remembered what she was talking about and bought the third installment in the series as soon as I finished this one.
UPDATE:
So I looked on her website, and the mentioning of the banshee that was confusing me so much? That's because it was in a novella. I thought maybe I was misremembering because there was a banshee in Urban Shaman, but now I know what I was so confused! I have to say, I love short stories and novellas as a deeper look into characters or maybe from another POV, but it does irritate me when the author treats it as a part of the series and constantly references events that happened - that just seems like marketing to go buy the anthology the novella appeared in. Anyway...
While I thought I must have missed a book between this and the first of the series, I eventually remembered what she was talking about and bought the third installment in the series as soon as I finished this one.
UPDATE:
So I looked on her website, and the mentioning of the banshee that was confusing me so much? That's because it was in a novella. I thought maybe I was misremembering because there was a banshee in Urban Shaman, but now I know what I was so confused! I have to say, I love short stories and novellas as a deeper look into characters or maybe from another POV, but it does irritate me when the author treats it as a part of the series and constantly references events that happened - that just seems like marketing to go buy the anthology the novella appeared in. Anyway...
September 20, 2014
I hate Joanne Walker with a passion, I hate her attitude towards life and people, I hate her thoughts, I hate her whining, I hate that she's alive and other people far more interesting in this universe are dead - like Colin.
Joanne Walker is the kind of character that is supposed to be cynical, rational possibly tortured/flawed - only she's not. Her voice belongs to a YA character, her actions speak of High-School drama, I cannot actually believe that she's supposed to be a twenty-seven years old woman, she's stuck somewhere at the angsty fifteen years old age. I cannot believe that this whole series which has such a nice cast of characters is build around someone like Joanne Walker and we're stuck with her pesimistic and unpleasant perspective about the world, it's so unfair. She's utterly lacking of joie de vivre. I feel that I would have enjoyed the plot of this book or the plot of the previous book or the plot of the next book so much more if someone else would have ended with the shaman powers - anyone else - and left Joanne Walker in her black bubble of depression.
Joanne Walker is the kind of character that is supposed to be cynical, rational possibly tortured/flawed - only she's not. Her voice belongs to a YA character, her actions speak of High-School drama, I cannot actually believe that she's supposed to be a twenty-seven years old woman, she's stuck somewhere at the angsty fifteen years old age. I cannot believe that this whole series which has such a nice cast of characters is build around someone like Joanne Walker and we're stuck with her pesimistic and unpleasant perspective about the world, it's so unfair. She's utterly lacking of joie de vivre. I feel that I would have enjoyed the plot of this book or the plot of the previous book or the plot of the next book so much more if someone else would have ended with the shaman powers - anyone else - and left Joanne Walker in her black bubble of depression.
February 10, 2015
Actual rating: 3.2 stars out of 5.
So.... The first book showed a bunch of promises. Jo seemed pretty smart (or towards becoming smart), stubborn as hell and a badass in creation. The bickering between her and Michael was super funny.
At the end of the first book I thought "hell, we might have a good series here!". I almost did a crazy dance and dived to the second book.
Boy, was I disappointed with this one.... Jo was dumb as a door. Everything bad that happened was because of her. Because she was to stubborn to learn and listen to the advices that were given to her. She kept dwelling on unimportant stuff when she should be paying attention and listening to her gut.
I'm Utterly disappointed...
Bright side of this book, the bickering and sexual tension between Jo and Michael, The Boss. This kept the book fun.
Bearing in mind the end of this book, which showed a more opened and alert Jo, I hope the next one will be better.
So.... The first book showed a bunch of promises. Jo seemed pretty smart (or towards becoming smart), stubborn as hell and a badass in creation. The bickering between her and Michael was super funny.
At the end of the first book I thought "hell, we might have a good series here!". I almost did a crazy dance and dived to the second book.
Boy, was I disappointed with this one.... Jo was dumb as a door. Everything bad that happened was because of her. Because she was to stubborn to learn and listen to the advices that were given to her. She kept dwelling on unimportant stuff when she should be paying attention and listening to her gut.
I'm Utterly disappointed...
Bright side of this book, the bickering and sexual tension between Jo and Michael, The Boss. This kept the book fun.
Bearing in mind the end of this book, which showed a more opened and alert Jo, I hope the next one will be better.
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