Door Number Three by Patrick O’Leary

Our February 18 book, Patrick O’Leary’s Door Number Three, was chosen in an unusual manner. Last summer at the WorldCon in LA, I kept bumping into this strange fellow at nearly every program item I attended (panel, reading, signing, kaffeeklatsch, you name it). We finally introduced ourselves, and it turned out that the guy’s name was Patrick O’Leary, his first novel had just been published, and he was attending his first WorldCon. Patrick seemed to be a nice guy, and he and I obviously shared many of the same tastes, so I lobbied for the Reading Group to read his book.

Six folks showed up for the discussion of Door Number Three. The plot is very intricate and is best enjoyed if you don’t know much in advance, but I will mention a few elements: Catholicism, time travel, psychology, Esther Williams,

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The Shape-Changer’s Wife by Sharon Shinn

Four of us met to discuss another first novel, The Shape-Changer’s Wife by Sharon Shinn, at the FACT Office on February 4. It’s a story about a young magician apprenticed to a master sorcerer with a mysterious wife and a bizarre household staff. We felt that it was a skillfully written fantasy novel that would appeal to young adults. One person was reminded of The Sword in the Stone, both in tone and in certain plot elements. We found that although the story was well plotted and cleanly told, the characterization lacked depth. Overall we liked the book and enjoyed the novelty of reading a short standalone fantasy novel, and we’re curious what Ms. Shinn will write in the future.

–A. T. Campbell, III

Branch Point by Mona Clee

On January 21, five of us met at Adventures in Crime and Space to discuss Branch Point, a first novel by former Austinite Mona Clee. Two people who couldn’t attend the meeting e-mailed comments about the novel. The story was a new twist on time travel, with a group of teenagers from 2063 traveling back to various events in the late 20th century trying to prevent nuclear disaster. Notably, the book uses recent and current political figures (especially Presidents Kennedy and Clinton) as major characters in the story. An initial gripping chain of events got us hurtling through the first 60 pages or so, but some of us felt the plot lost inertia and focus in the latter part of the book. Several bizarre historical facts (Colonel Sanders was almost a Vice Presidential candidate in the 60s?) were used as springboards for ingenious plot twists. We felt this was a strong first novel, and we’re looking forward to Ms. Clee’s next book.

–A. T. Campbell, III

Night Calls by Katharine Eliska Kimbriel

On January 7, four of us met at the FACT Office to talk about Night Calls, the new fantasy by Austin writer Katharine Eliska Kimbriel. Two others had read the book but were unable to attend the meeting, so they e-mailed comments to be brought to the discussion. Kimbriel’s novel , set in 19th century America, is about a frontier family confronted by werewolves, vampires, and other supernatural creatures. The e-mailed comments included “it is charming” and “I love this book! I rushed out immediately to buy the sequel, only to find that it’s not out yet.” Those physically in attendance also liked the book quite a lot. The frontier atmosphere was well portrayed. One person compared the book favorably to S. P. Somtow’s Vampire Junction. Most of the group liked the details of frontier life, but there were too many quilting scenes for my personal taste. We liked how the book delivered on the horror elements suggested by the cover, yet refrained from explicit gore. The voice of the narrator, a teenage girl, felt “real” to our group. While the story reached a satisfying closure, it left opportunities for a sequel. It looks like Ms. Kimbriel now has several people looking forward to her next book.

–A. T. Campbell, III