House of Dolls (House of Dolls, #1) by Harmon Cooper

House of Dolls (House of Dolls, #1) Reviews

• 
  Malum

  2.5 stars.
  With books like this, the author taking his subject matter too seriously almost always ruins it for me. Luckily, Cooper is pretty tongue-in-cheek here and creates some pretty fun moments.
  
  On the other hand, there is a bit too much exposition and meandering scenes that seemed kind of pointless. It sometimes feels like Cooper had enough story for about 3/4 of the page count and padded the rest out.
  
  Like most of these independent series' that flood Amazon, this was ok for what it was but it didn't make me want to continue with the next book.
• 
  Bon Tom

  I'm reading some strange books lately, and having great fun.
  
  This is the ultimate boy toy fantasy. I found myself tricked into imagining myself in the role of main character and how great it would be to have his power. Like, really imagining.
  
  I probably haven't indulged in such an infantile fantasy ever since I scooped mushrooms with my father in the woods, and secretly hoping Smurfs were real and I'd uncover one of them every moment beneath some 'shroom!
• 
  Eric

  As goes, it’s ok, but (like another similar novel I’m reading) a bit heavy on the wish-fulfillment and insufficiently so on some other things (exactly/well-chosen words, ...)
• 
  Timothy Nugent

  I have read the first and half of the second book of this series. There are multiple problems with this series. I will try to keep this spoiler free.
  1. The main character is unlikable. Sure, some will probably like him, but he comes off as kind of a jerk. Yes, it later on explains why he acts this way, but that doesn't make you like him any more than before.
  2. This is very slice of life. Some people like these types of books, but there doesn't seem to be much of a sense of urgency or difficulty to overcome. Maybe there is some big bad further on in the series which has yet to be revealed, but so far nothing has been mentioned.
  3. The powers are very nebulous, I believe on purpose. He seems to be able to do almost anything, up to his imagination. The problem with this is that I could imagine him doing quite a few things that would mean instant death among pretty much anyone he wants, as long as he strikes first at least. Either the author has a lack of imagination, or he has some limitation that he did not explain to the reader. This leads the reader to assume that the MC can use it this way, but he is too dumb to realize it.
• 
  Liquid Frost

  So - Centralia; many similar traits as Earth, but there are loads of exemplars - i.e. guys and gals with super powers.
  
  Roman Martin is a non-exemplar, or a regular person. But, he stumbles into the opportunity to elevate his status significantly and receives a unique power.
  
  His power: he can animate objects. What does a guy who likes randoms do first, and pretty much second? He brings to life two sex-dolls. Ironically, he has yet to drive that train to pound-town. Odd, I say. Odd.
  
  Yes, there is more to the story than this. Roman works in government - immigration, and he crosses paths with spies from different regions, various exemplars, trains to become one himself, and navigates all this while dealing with a bitchy work manager.
  
  This is definitely not a full story. This is a launch of a serial and as Roman's powers grow - I'm sure there will be more action to witness.
  
  In all, a fast read. I'm curious to see how future installments fare.
  
  3.5 of 5. ARC Provided
• 
  Kay

  Oooooooh... this is Harmon Cooper at his glorious best.
  
  I adored Cooper's 'Life is a Beautiful Thing' series. A d o r e d i t. It was just so out of this world and enjoyable, for me anyway. This might be just me too, but I can feel some of that same vibe and excitement in 'House of Dolls' and it had me turning the pages like they were on fire.
  
  The storytelling and characterizations are excellent, and it's wickedly evil, wickedly sexy, and wickedly funny. [BTW, I refuse to apologise for my overuse of 'wickedly'.] It gets in your head, visualize everything, and it just won't go away.
  
  Whether you are familiar with Cooper's work or not, don't hesitate to give this a go. It's something different, and you won't be disappointed.
  
  I was given an ecopy which I voluntarily read and honestly reviewed. All opinions are my own.
• 
  Curtis

  Weird, Interesting, and Unsettling
  
  Cooper’s Cherry Blossom Girls walks a fine line between humor, drama, action, and horror. It also pokes much fun at writers and the self-publishing world. It’s a good read. Take away pretty much all humor from it, and you’ll come close to this.
  
  This is very interesting: not only for the powers, politics, and other very adult themes (and no, not the sex), but for the characters. However, running a story with an anti-hero protagonist and an anti-villain (?) antagonist makes for many pursed-eyebrow moments. The whole thing feels a bit like a social experiment, where you can appreciate the skill and the form, if maybe not the result. Well written and edited, it’s a skillful piece of work, but I’m still trying to figure out if I like it or not. Looks like you’ll need to do the same.
• 
  William Howe

  Thriller? Not so much
  
  Sure, there are spies. But the pace is wrong for it to be a ‘thriller’. This is very ho-hum, with a side of sex.
  
  The world-building is incomplete and bad. There is an international flavor, but there is no substance. You are simply *told* that there are other countries.
  
  That’s really the issue: everything is ‘tell’. Things only happen when they are convenient to the narrative. Every character is flawed past redemption.
  
  I got halfway and just couldn’t keep pushing. Other, better books to read.
  
  DNF
• 
  Holly Lenz

  House of Dolls is an unusual adult superhero adventure in a strange future where classes are divided based on their powers or lack of powers. The main character, who isn't quite a hero, works in the immigration department for people with superpowers. The story is entertaining, humorous at times, sometimes dark, and a bit of social commentary without being preachy. This story isn't for everyone- there's a fair amount of sex included- but it's a really good book.
• 
  Frank Bertino

  I've Got A Secret
  
  Roman has a dark secret. It shapes his life, a life of mediocrity and guilt. Will gaining a superpower resolve his issues? At a minimum, it will be more interesting. I like the action, humor, and relationships. Roman is a compelling competent, yet tragic character. The plot is interesting, fresh, and intriguing. I anxiously await the book.
• 
  Jamie Beach

  I was a huge fan of Life is a Beautiful Thing series and so became a fan of Harman. I took no time to read his Feedback Loop series too. So I decided to try House of Dolls. The writing style remains solid but I just couldn’t totally get into this. I’ll probably try others in this series. It’s fun. But outside of the world built in LIABT.
• 
  Jonathan

  Harmon writes...
  
  ...entertaining stories but he also does a good job at bringing humanity to his characters. He really enjoys angst, moral ambiguity and dilemmas, and sex. Yet he still writes with heart.
• 
  Scott Rhine

  Good origin story
  
  This starts a little cartoonish and violates one of its own rules when a non-super gets powers in a lottery, but it soon warms up to become a real hero novel with depth and action
• 
  Jim Grogan

  An everyday tale of a beurocrat and his dolls
  
  A desk jockey ready to jump off the roof, two spies, animated dolls superpowered people an everyday thing just another day at the office then.......
• 
  Tuang

  Great fun
  
  I am really hooked, can't wait to read the next one.
  This one has set up the world and story nicely.
  Hope to read about more dolls. Cheers.
• 
  Shely

  Fun read
  
  Supers with a dark side and an interesting New power a hero you can relate to that is still flawed