I bought Sergei Lukyanenko's Nightwatch because it had an employee recommendation tag stuck to it at Barnes and Noble. I don't know what whoever tagged it was thinking. Honestly, I really shouldn't even be writing this review, because I never managed to finish the book...but I don't think I will.

I mean, if I were kidnapped and left to rot in a gulag somewhere, and this was the only book available to me, then yes, I'd finish it. Otherwise, no. Am I being dramatic? Well, I tend to strong opinions about my reviews--and, honestly, why else would you need a review in the first place? I'm not trying to sell the books, I'm trying to steer you in the right direction, and, hopefully, keep you from wasting your time. Admittedly, most of my reviews are negative. Then again, admittedly, most modern fantasy is bad. Heck, a good book is a rare commodity in general and always has been. I'm of the opinion that--sorry Mr. Bloom--many so-called "classics" are only classics because they're old and we can't quite understand them.

Dickens, Bronte, even Hardy--these were sensationalist authors in their time, and most of their contemporaries thought they were writing crap. Most of Dickens' "novels" were originally published as magazine serials. He was the Stephen King of his time, except he had a political streak.