From the Bookshelf of Action Heroine Fans…

Bad Milk

Billy Wong

Find A Copy At

Group Discussions About This Book

No group discussions for this book yet.

What Members Thought

Jul 21, 2013 Werner rated it it was amazing

Shelves: action-heroines, trad-fantasy, short-stories

Note, May 20, 2017: I've just edited this review to supply an accidentally-omitted word in one sentence.

Relative newcomer to action-heroine fiction writing Billy Wong has already produced several novels in his swords-and-sorcery Iron Flower series, featuring warrior woman Rose Agen, the "Iron Rose." This stand-alone short story doesn't come chronologically at the beginning of Rose's adventures, and will perhaps be best appreciated by those who are already fans; but I've been intrigued by the cha Note, May 20, 2017: I've just edited this review to supply an accidentally-omitted word in one sentence.

Relative newcomer to action-heroine fiction writing Billy Wong has already produced several novels in his swords-and-sorcery Iron Flower series, featuring warrior woman Rose Agen, the "Iron Rose." This stand-alone short story doesn't come chronologically at the beginning of Rose's adventures, and will perhaps be best appreciated by those who are already fans; but I've been intrigued by the character for some time, and when Billy recently offered this story for free, I snapped up the chance to check out the series in a small installment. As my rating shows, I liked what I read!

This story gets down to slam-bang weaponless combat pretty quick; but it's non-lethal combat in that scene, and the story as a whole has a fairly light tone. (Not being familiar at all with the rest of the series --though I plan to change that eventually!-- I can't say whether this is true of all of the novels.) Wong's world-building isn't especially vivid or detailed (in fairness, much of the picture of the world was probably already painted in the earlier novels, so fans would simply fill it in here). The dialogue has a modern, colloquial quality, which isn't in itself a bad thing, but it doesn't suggest anything exotic or other-worldly about the setting; and though it's hard to explain without a spoiler, one aspect of the ending struck me as much too pat. Possibly 4 and 1/2 stars would have been a technically more correct measure of quality, but I rounded up.

There were plenty of reasons to do so. Even at this short length, and "meeting" her for the first time here, Rose comes across as a very well-drawn, appealing character: a tough fighter, but not wanting to hurt anyone unnecessarily; ethically-minded and caring. It's nice to encounter a strong, kick-butt female who's also a wife and loving mom, and Rose's description of what she went through to carry her twins to birth (she's taken a lot of abdominal wounds in her time, that have left scars inside and outside, and a swelling womb was really painful) made me want to stand up and cheer her. I was reminded of Bella Swan in Breaking Dawn; and the same critics who were maddened enough to spit nails by the latter portrayal of a woman actually accepting pain for the sake of developing life inside her would probably be similarly outraged by Rose. Since I see this as a mark of enormous strength, not weakness, she won my enduring admiration. (Re Rose's family life --her family is off-stage in this story-- one line here that implies that her husband Finn hits her shouldn't be misunderstood; they're both strong, brawny types who sometimes spar together in friendly practice matches.) The basic plot is original, and the author does action scenes well. And though this is pulp entertainment, without great literary pretensions, the author makes some telling points about the role of cultural standards of beauty and "ugliness," and how the way we and others see our looks affects our sense of self-worth. Rose, for instance, is self-conscious about her big physique and scarred face and body, especially the damage her bosom has taken from war wounds --I think this would particularly resonate with breast cancer victims who've taken similar damage from a surgeon's knife. There's also a not-flattering look at those who want to make money by helping us "feel beautiful" (when, perhaps, we could do that for free by taking a real look at ourselves).

Billy, thanks for giving us a chance to sample the Iron Flower series for free! My first visit to Rose's world won't be my last. :-) ...more

15 likes · Like · see review

Group Home Bookshelf Discussions

Photos Videos

Send invite Members Polls