Cool new series

Okay, technically it's an old series that I'm now reading. So it's new to me.

As anyone who checks in on my blog has probably figured out, I'd love to write my own reviews of the books I read, but I rarely manage it. My CFS-fogged brain, while it can still read happily (thank goodness!), struggles to coherently come up with intelligent discussion of the book. And being tired, typing it all up while working hard for the words I want is often more than I feel like managing. I could be reading another book instead.

All the same, I thought I might try tossing out a few comments here and there on what I'm reading. I get great pleasure from reading such things from other people so maybe it will be useful to someone else. Even if it's not, it's nice to have a bit of a "squee" now and then.

Right now I'm caught up in Kage Bager's Company books.

They're great.

A friend told me about them long ago - she's a big fan and buys them all in hardcover as soon as they come out - and I was always intereted but, like everything else, didn't know where I was going to find the time to fit them into my life.

I read book one, In the Garden of Iden (I'd like you to my Library Thing page for it, but the site is down so this will take you to Fantastic Fiction instead, which is a brilliant site) probably last year, and was fascinated.

I borrowed the next few from Alison and onto the TBR shelf they went. I added book two, Sky Coyote to my personal TBR challenge to try to get myself to read it and did so last week. Now I'm beyond fascinated and into hooked. I've since also read book three, Mendoza in Hollywood, and I have the first book of short stories waiting for me.

At 100 pages into Mendoza in Hollywood, I phoned Alison to beg her to send me more books. I'm trying to read one Company book, one other book, one Company book etc as I think if I read them back to back, my brain might explode, and it's kind of fragile as it is. I know I miss stuff, and I certainly forget stuff, pretty quickly, but I try to accept that and enjoy the reading.

The basic storyline is as follows (and stolen from Wikipedia):

Dr. Zeus (or The Company) operates from the 24th century, using technologies of time travel and immortality to exploit the past for commercial gain. The immortality technology is limited to taking young children and turning them into cyborgs. The time travel technology only allows journeys into the past, and returns to the present. In addition, the technology is expensive and dangerous for normal humans to use.

History, or at least recorded history, cannot be changed. Dr. Zeus cannot save Lincoln, warn the Titanic, prevent the sack of Rome, or stop the burning of the Library at Alexandria. It can take valuable artifacts thought to be lost in these and other events, and 'rediscover' them in the future. However, even without the dangers of time travel, Dr. Zeus' employees hate the past. By their time, all stimulants and narcotics are illegal, vegetarianism is compulsory, and they are disease- and dirt-phobic. They find the past's inhabitants disgusting.

To carry out its mission, Dr. Zeus sends its employees far into human prehistory, where they take children from Neanderthal and modern human families and give them the immortality treatment. These individuals are then promised a bright future in the 24th century, in exchange for working for the Company till then. Their job is to Preserve cultural artifacts, valuable plants, and endangered species, hiding them in safe places till the Company can 'recover' them in the future. The cyborgs will get to the 24th century the old fashioned way, by living through the intervening millennia. Along the way they can create others to help them, using children who would otherwise die and not affect history. They are also provided with many recordings of future culture, entertainment, and a carefully edited view of history. Dr. Zeus alone knows everything that will happen up till the 24th century.

As the series progresses, it becomes apparent that the Dr. Zeus story is itself a fiction. How they came by their technology, and how long the Company has really existed, is an unfolding mystery. In addition, nobody, not even Dr. Zeus, knows what happens after the year 2355. Although communication between different times is possible, there is nothing from beyond a certain date in 2355. This is known as the Silence, and is a source of dread to both Company people and cyborgs.

The first book is really set up, introducing us to Mendoza and her tragic first love affair that will resonante through centuries, who if not the major character certainly seems to be a catalyst character from what I can tell so far, the Company and their goals and the general world. It is in Sky Coyote that the anomolies and mysteries of the Company start to show up and they are just as fascinating as the current-time action of the main characters. I need to know what is really going on and what happens to everyone. I really, really, really do.

Since I finished Mendoza in Hollywood last night, I'm up to my in between book now and I'm thinking I'll go back to Venetia and finish that. Then it's on to Black Projects, White Knights, which is a collection of short stories. Hopefully by the time I've finished that and read something else, there will have been a parcel arriving in our PO box.

I do have a variety of interesting sounding books to read for my two book lists I try to keep up with (maybe I'll pimp those in another post as this one is WAAAAY too long ready) so I'll need to fit them in too (the most immediate ones are Faerie Wars by Herbie Brennan and The Bone Doll's Twin and Hidden Warrior by Lynn Flewelling). I should have enough to keep me going for a while.

Also convenient, the last book in the Company series comes out next month and Alison assures me she is getting it in hardcover and immediately. So when I get to that point, she'll have it all finished and I can happily read my way through to the end.

What fun!

June Personal TBR Challenge

Read at least one of the following:

1. Games of Command - Linnea Sinclair
   
2. Sky Coyote - Kage Baker
   
3. Persuasion - Jane Austen
   
4. finish Ship of Destiny - Robin Hobb
   
5. Judas Unchained - Peter F. Hamilton
   

May Reads

We've been on holiday, so this is a little late, but here it is.

May 2007 Reading

1. Claiming the Courtesan - Anna Campbell (8/10)
   
2. The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club - Dorothy L. Sayers (DNF)
   
3. Bitten - Kelley Armstrong (8/10)
   
4. Song of the Beast (8/10)
   
5. Queen of the Darkness - Anne Bishop (10/10)
   
6. Seraphs - Faith Hunter (9/10)
   
7. The Secret Pearl - Mary Balogh (7/10)
   

Notes:

1. New author for me. I chose this book because of the controversy surrounding it - the hero abducts and rapes the heroine and then everything has to be mended. I was happy with it, but didn't fall into either the love it or the hate it camp. I thought the parts of the story were good, but the author didn't stitch them together too well. Vertiy when from justifiable hate to love without enough time for it and the end didn't face up to the problems ahead for the couple. The idea worked, but the pacing wasn't perfect. I'll read the author again.
   
2. There is nothing at all wrong with this book. I've read it before and enjoyed it, but I just wasn't in the mood this time.
   
3. New author for me. I'd tried to read this once before and didn't finish it, but once I got past the place where I stalled last time, I rolled on to the finish and liked it very much. I'll read the rest of the series as time and energy allow. Although I'm still not sure how much I actually like Elena.
   
4. Another new author. I really liked this - and her use of the dragons was really clever. Aidan, the protagonist, was a great character, but I was never totally sold on the other major characters. I also felt she didn't use first person as well as it could be done because she kept switching around, at one point for a single, short chapter. But still a good story and I've already found another of her books for the TBR mountain. An excellent new author to discover.
   
5. I raved about this here. I LOVED this book and now plan to go out and convert the unconverted to Anne Bishop and especially this series.
   
6. Another excellent series - I would have given this 9.5 if I used halves in my ratings. Since I don't, it got a 9, but only because, as with the first book, I got a little confused about exactly what was going on in the climax. I can't decide if I love or hate Faith Hunter, as she told a great story, answered some of the questions she had previously raised - and then raised dozens more fascinating and tempting ones I don't have answers too. I want the next one NOW.
   
7. This was recommended to me by a friend and while I liked it, I didn't love it as much as she does. It started off with a bang, then slowed down to a pace where I wanted to yell at the characters to "do something already!", but once it got going again it was nicely satisfying.
   

Books Shopping

Dave needed some spare time to work this morning, Marcus was home (he's had chicken pox and I decided that while it was most likely safe for him to return to daycare it was better to be safe than sorry) and I had promised to pick up some books for a friend from Barbara's Books.

I picked up four books for her and bought two for me.  I can't help it.  I'm addicted.  Okay?

Sebastian - Anne Bishop

City of Pearl - Karen Traviss

Cinderella at Thursday Lunchtime

Here's a bit more done on Cinderella. I've got those trees done and will now go move on to more of the castle. Progress is slow, as expected, but it is so so so so so much better than doing nothing at all.

Books in the mail

The Invisible Ring - Anne Bishop

Down These Dark Spaceways - Mike Resnik (ed)

Seraphs - Faith Hunter

After a little thought, I decided to start Seraphs first, largely dictated by the fact I'm going out of town to visit my parents this weekend and I have a very good friend there who will want to read it after me (and probably her husband after her).

Two Down

I just finished a second book for my personal May TBR Challenge.

I've finished Queen of the Darkness by Anne Bishop and I absolutely loved it.  A total 10/10 read. I may or may not get to do a more detailed response to it late, but for now I'm just going to rave a bit.

It was a brilliant conclusion to the problem.  And I nice way of having a solution without a devestating war and without turning the story totally unrealistic as the whole farm boy saves the world while the armies are poised thing so often can be.

And Jaenelle and Daemon.

What a beautiful, beautiful love story, told in such a nicely understated way that it didn't need the kind of explicit detail generally offered in a romance novel.  While I enjoy a good romance novel (and some sex in it too), this touched me so very, very much more.

I'm totally in love with both of them and I want them to be happy forever.

Not surprisingly, Dreams Made Flesh, with it's further glimpses into the world (and one about Jaenelle and Daemon I understand) is now at the top of my TBR pile.

Although I think I want a small break before going on to anything else, so will go back to Venetia in the meantime, until I'm ready for the next one.

I jsut want to savour this wonderful series a bit more first.

People were raving to me and telling me to read it and I didn't believe them.  Everyone, I was wrong.  You we right.

If you like excellent fantasy and you haven't read Anne Bishop's Black Jewels trilogy, go and do it.  Now!

Darn It! I Did it Again!

I'm currently reading "Queen of the Darkness" by Anne Bishop.

Okay, let me claify that.  I'm currently loving "Queen of the Darkness".

I've just finished Part 1.  And I tried.  Really, I did.  I tried my hardest.

But I can see that things are going to go bad from here.  Things are probably going to go really bad.  And while I have faith in the author, the story and the characters, I'm still very worried about them.

(Remember, I'm the person who still hasn't finished "Ship of Destiny" because I can't face the bad stuff to get to the satisfactory conclusion.)

So I read the last couple of pages.

I know I shouldn't have.  But I did.

I'm a terrible end reader.  Each book I swear I won't do it this time, but often I do.  Because I get so worried about the characters I have to sneak ahead to check on them.

If I'm lucky, the main story has been wound up by then and I get a sneak peek that people are okay and alive but I haven't spoiled myself to the main story.  (Sometimes I'm not so lucky and I do spoil myself.)

Fortunately, this time I can relax a bit and get on with the main tale.  But tomorrow I think.  If I start part 2 tonight, I suspect I'll just keep reading.  And since I have a sick child (I suspect chickenpox but need to wait until tomorrow to see if the blisters have started to crust over to confirm it - picture of the poor child here) I will need all the sleep I can get to cope with tomorrow.

Do other people have this problem or am I just weird and it's just me?

Marcus is Sick, Poor Kid

Details over on my livejournal.

Socks and Shoes

Socks and Shoes
Originally uploaded by rocalisa.

Journalling~
It’s not as if I really need any futher proof that you’re a smart cookie, but you provide it every day. Whenever I tell you that it’s time to put on your shoes and socks, you immediately correct me. “Socks and shoes” you say very firmly. Of course, logically you are absolutely right. I do need to put on your socks before I put on your shoes. Since I’ve probably been saying “shoes and socks” all my life, you worked that out all by yourself. You are one smart little boy and I can’t wait to see you take on the world. I think the world is going to have to watch out. You’re going to be amazing.


Credits~
Background paper from "Rainy Days and Mondays" by Dani Mogstad; stamp from "Swimtrunks" by Kim Christensen and Meredith Fenwick; label from "Loosely Labeled" by Katie Pertiet; torn heart by Jessica Bolton in the "In Memory of Miles" kit; highlighting from "Highlight-It" by Vicki Stegall; frames and foil alpha from "Rock Star" by Dani Mogstad; yellow flower from "Raincoats on the Beach" by Misty Cato; buttons by Chere Edwards in the "In Memory of Miles" kit; red flower by Tiff Brady in the "In Memory of Miles" kit; cube bead alpha is "Alphablocks" by Natalie Braxton; font is KGD Angela.

Best Friends

Best Friends
Originally uploaded by rocalisa.

Credits~
Everything by Dani Mogstad. Paper from "Hard@Play"; flower from "Flower Patch"; alpha from "Hand Stitched Alpha". Font is High Strung.

Butterfly

Butterfly
Originally uploaded by rocalisa.

Credits~
Paper from "Story of Us" by Michelle Coleman; word art from "Love Me Tender" in the "This Love" collection; leaf stamp from "Ribbon Roses Collection - Stamps" by Anita Stergiou; butterflies from "Painted Butterflies" by Amber Clegg; font is Jane Austen.

Thursday's Child

Thursday's Child
Originally uploaded by rocalisa.

Credits~
Background from "Artsy Fartsy II" by Lisa Whitney; frame from "Vintage Frames 2" by Nancy Comelab; alpha from "Garden Party" by Zoe Pearn; font is Freebooter Script.

Visiting Aunty Barbara

Visiting Aunty Barbara
Originally uploaded by rocalisa.

Journalling~
How do you know when you buy too many books? When you're heading off for a Sunday drive and your three year-old asks to go and visit "Aunty Barbara".

Aunty Barbara is actually Barbara ******, aka my pusher and occasionally even my pimp, although that last one may be a bit backwards. She and her husband Peter run my favourite, and lifesaving, bookshop. They import SF, fantasy and romance books from the US, most of which are never released through the New Zealand local publishing market. Barbara keeps me up to date with my favourite authors and series, as well as keeping me permanently tempted by new offerings.

Marcus has been going to visit Barbara's Books since he was a tiny baby just out of hospital, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised that he recognises the way to Aunty Barbara's. And I admit, I'm not going to complain too loudly about going there.

And Marcus' opinion? "Aunty Barbara drives a red car."

She must be a good person then, mustn't she?

Credits~
Notepaper from "Just Need to Write Down My Thoughts" by Lauren Grier; paper flowers from "Paper Flowers" by Dani Mogstad; dragon stamp from "Prince Edward" by Katie Pertiet; round flowers from "Tiny Flowers" by Misty Cato; everything else from "Be Inspired" by the Sweet Shoppe Designers and Gina Miller; font is KGD Kirsty Script.

Updated my Flickr at Last

It's taken me a while, but I've just added my 14 latest layouts to my Flickr albums (although you'll only see 13 unless you're registed as family since one is on my niece and I don't currently have permission to share).

I'll post a couple of favourites here, but I'm not going to inundate you with 13 posts, so if you want to see the others, follow the link and take a look.

Cinderella on Friday Night

Cinderella #003
Originally uploaded by rocalisa.

Here's my process for the day. I just did a bit of work on the trees down the bottom. I probably did a couple of 15 minute session in the morning and perhaps half an hour in the evening. That's more than enough at a time, so I shall now pack up and head for bed and try to make up for the 5am start Marcus forced on me this morning.

If all goes well, I might even get a little bit done tomorrow as well. (But life has proved well to me that it's fine to make plans, but I mustn't get too attached to them as they are likely to change.)

Thirteen Mirabilia Patterns in My Stash

I want to use my blog more, so I decided to try doing the Thursday Thirteen each week.

Thirteen Mirabilia Patterns in My Stash
(that I haven't stitched)

1. Autumn Queen
This is my next planned stitch after Cinderella.
I've done the other three seasons already.


2. Mermaids of the Deep Blue


3. Titania, Queen of the Fairies


4. Stargazer


5. Royal Holiday


6. Scent of Old Roses


7. Feather Fairy


8. Deco Spirits


9. Summer in My Garden


10. Queen of Peace


11. Madonna of the Garden


12. Petal Fairy


13. Gathering Eggs





Links to other Thursday Thirteens!

1. (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)


Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Itching to be Stitching

Over the last week or so, I've had this desperate urge to do some stitching. However, I'm also aware I can't push myself to hard. And, to combat the urge to stitch is this feeling of exhaustion when I consider the physical effort involved in dong that stitching.

Yesterday I found myself surfing the Mirabilia Bulletin Board, looking at all the lovely works in progress and remembering how much I like Mirabilia designs.

I've been so caught up in the big and complicated things, like Chatelaine, Character Creations and Heaven and Earth Designs, that I was ignoring the loveliness of all those Mirabilias I have in my stash. Sure, they're still big, but they are a quieter, easier stitch.

So I got out my Cinderella, put her on the Q-Snaps and I've been doing a few stitches of trees. I'm only doing a little bit - 10 or 15 minutes here or there as I feel I can - so I'm not going to make lots of progress, but if I'm finding satsifaction for those itchy stitchy fingers, that's got to be a good thing.

(The photo shows what I had done - not much - before I started doing some today.)

Personal TBR Challenge - One down for May

I did it. I've read one of the books I challenged myself to read for May.

I finished Song of the Beast by Carol Berg today. I really enjoyed it and rated it 8/10. The ending was just lovely and the story was different and clever.

It did have a couple of issues - mainly that the pacing was a little spotty and that she used multiple first person narrators and I don't think that was as well managed as it could be. (I'll try to do a more details review later.)

But I still really liked the book and I'll be reading more of Ms Berg's books. In fact, since my favourite bookstore is having books for sale at 10% off for the next month because the New Zealand dollar is currently so strong, I've ordered Transformation, the first in her Rai-kirah series.

Book obsession, I bow before you. You are strong and I am weak.

Atlantis Rising by Alyssa Day

Title: Atlantis Rising
Author: Alyssa Day
Published: March 2007
Grade: 7/10

Series: Warriors of Poseidon, Book 1

First Line(s):
Conlan waved a hand in front of the portal and briefly wondered whether its magic would even recognize a warrior who hadn’t passed through its gateway for more than seven years.

Why I Chose this Book:
Basically just because it looked interesting. Here was another paranormal romance with the same basic theme as most of them, but with the minor twist of warriors from Atlantis instead of vampires or werewolves.

Blurb:
Eleven thousand years ago, before the seas swallowed the Atlanteans, Poseidon assigned a few chosen warriors to act as sentinels for humans in the new world. There was only one rule-desiring them was forbidden. But rules were made to be broken...

When she calls... Riley Dawson is more than a dedicated Virginia Beach social worker. She's blessed with a mind link that only Atlanteans have been able to access for thousands of years. Being an "empath" may explain her wistful connection to the roiling waves of the ocean, the sanctuary it provides, and the sexual urges that seem to emanate from fathoms below...

He will come. Conlan, the High Prince of Atlantis, has surfaced on a mission to retrieve Poseidon's stolen trident. Yet something else has possessed Conlan: the intimate emotions-and desires-of a human. Irresistibly drawn to the uncanny beauty, Conlan soon shares more than his mind. But in the midst of a battle to reclaim Poseidon's power, how long can a forbidden love last between two different souls from two different worlds?

My Comments:
I really don't have a lot to say about this one. It's now a couple of weeks since I finished it and I simply remember it as an okay book. Yes, warriors from Atlantis was a different twist, but really the book was essentially the same as any other of the mid-line paranormal romances out there. It was a satisfying read without anything spectacular to make is rise above the rest. Athough I must say that Poseidon himself was pretty cool, even if he didn't make a physical appearance at all. If you get a chance to read it, it's a pleasant way to pass the time. If you don't, you're not really missing anything major. I may read the second book, I don't know. But I won't be buying it. I'll get it from the library.

Ysabel by Guy Gavriel Kay

Title: Ysabel
Author: Guy Gavriel Kay
Published: 2007
Grade: 9/10

Series: Related to The Fionavar Tapestry but a stand alone

Why I Chose this Book:
I read and loved The Fionavar Tapestry when it came out and went on to read Tigana when that was published. The latter was an amazing book, but fundamentally quite depressing (or at least, I remember finding it so at the time), so when Kay's books seemed to continue in that vein and get longer and longer as well, I stopped reading his books but always imagined I'd go back to them one day. When I heard about Ysabel coming out, and that it was more in the tone of the Fionavar books with mundane and otherworldly elements, I knew I wanted to read this one.

Blurb:
In this exhilarating, moving new work, Guy Gavriel Kay casts brilliant light on the ways in which history—whether of a culture or a family—refuses to be buried. Ned Marriner, fifteen years old, has accompanied his photographer father to Provence for a six-week "shoot" of images for a glossy coffee-table book. Gradually, Ned discovers a very old story playing itself out in this modern world of iPods, cellphones, and seven-seater vans whipping along roads walked by Celtic tribes and Roman legions. On one holy, haunted night of the ancient year, when the borders between the living and the dead are down and fires are lit upon the hills, Ned, his family, and his friends are shockingly drawn into this tale, as dangerous, mythic figures from conflicts of long ago erupt into the present, claiming and changing lives.

My Comments:
As I said, I read and loved the Fionavar books when they came out. Part of that was a matter of timing - I read them just as I was really becoming a dedicated fantasy reader and I would have been in my mid to late teens at the time. These were the first "out of our world" type books I'd read that had adult protagonists - before that I'd been reading books about teenagers having adventures - and to meet these university students (or they may even had been graduates, I don't 100% remember now) was like entering a new world. I loved it. And as good (but depressing) as I found Tigana, I missed that element in Kay's second work. Historical fiction/fantasy isn't as much my thing and I think that's a significant factor in my I didn't read Kay's other books.

In Ysabel it seemed that I might get the best of both worlds - that unreality in our reality theme I like combined with Kay's more matured writing talents.

For the first half of the book, I wasn't exactly sure. The book moved well, the charcters were excellently drawn and I was very interested - but I admit I wasn't captivated. I wondered if I had been expecting too much; if the combination of probably inaccurate memories of books I'd really liked joined with Kay's current reputation built on the books I hadn't read had made me demand far too much from one book. Then, about half way through, some new, but familiar characters turned up, their presence made some of the previously mysterious illusions make sense and the book really took off. And in the end, I loved it. It loses out on a perfect score because of that marginally weaker first half, but I recommend Ysabel whole-heartedly. And for all that I said the presence of those other characters (I didn't guess who they were going to be, so don't want to spoil it for anyone else who might otherwise be surprised) marked the turn in the book, I still believe the book would be just as satisfying for anyone who hasn't read Kay before. Their arrival in the turning point, but I doesn't matter if the reader has met them previously or not.

So, the book itself.

Nick, the protagonist, seems to me to be very well drawn. I admit I don't have any personal experience with 15 year old boys in 2007, but he felt real to me. He runs, listens to his ipod (verisimilitude or pop culture reference that will date?), emails his friends back at school and embarks on a tentative friendship with an American girl his own age on an exchange in Provence. But all is not as simple as it seems and an encounter with a strange man in a cathedral sets Nick and Kate on a strange journey, caught up in a centuries old love triangle. He's forced to discover, first that he isn't as grown up as he imagined and then to do that growing up as he must deal with adult issues and new mental abilities waking inside him.

The minor characters are also well drawn, especially Melanie with her green hair, organised mind and post-it notes. Of all the people filling the book, it is probably Kate who is the most broadly drawn, an odd situation considering that she, along with Nick, is part of the story from the beginning. Yet somehow, she never truly became part of the central, or at least it seemed that way to me. I'm still not sure if this was intentional or accidental.

The first half of the book is full of mysteries and unanswered questions; something I found a little frustrating and that reduced my enjoyment of that part of the book. There were so many hints of what was going on without telling me anything and that drives me nuts! However, my faith and persistence was rewarded, because once the answers started coming, around the halfway point, all the pieces that had been so carefully set up began to fall into place and everything began to pick up pace beautifully.

This is a tale about how history impinges on the present, not only the ancient history that is the central plot of the book, but family history as well. As the book progresses we discover that Nick's mother, a doctor working in the Sudan with Doctors Without Borders is running from her own past issues, focussing on her estrangement with her sister that has lasted the better part of twenty years. This is addressed and developed as Nick's aunt arrives to help with the mystical aspects of the tale and while a healing is begun, I was pleased that the two women still had work to do and it wasn't possible to dismiss two decades of acrimony overnight, no matter what the pressing world issues they might be facing.

All in all, I really enjoyed this book. While it is absolutely a stand alone novel, it would also be possible to see Nick and Company return in a future novel and I would be delighted to do so. A lovely book, it has also inspired me to put A Song for Arbonne on my TBR pile and The Summer Tree on my to-be-reread pile.

New Covers

At long last, there are some new covers up at A Cover a Day.

Smoke and Mirrors by Tanya Huff

Title: Smoke and Mirrors
Author: Tanya Huff
Published: June 2005
Grade: 6/10

Series: Tony Foster, Book 2

Why I Chose this Book:
I read the first book in this series a while back and had always figured I would read the next one some time. This was that time.

Blurb:
Poor Tony Foster with his burgeoning wizardly powers. No matter how many times he and his undead ex-boyfriend battle malevolent spirits to save the cast and crew of Darkest Night (the most popular vampire detective TV series in North America), everyone else on the set regards him as only a lowly production assistant. Having fended off evil shadows from another world, Tony now has to contend with filming haunted house scenes in a house that's actually haunted. When all the doors slam shut, he finds himself trapped with ghosts repeatedly reenacting their deaths, his painfully cynical and egotistical colleagues and—worst of all—the boss's bratty daughters.

My Comments:
While a fairly solid read, this isn't one of Huff's best efforts.

There's a good story idea here, but I felt that Huff had taken enough story for a short story or possibly a novella and then forced it to last through a full length novel. In my view the padding shows and the book suffers for it.

Tony is continuing to make a place for himself in the life he's chosen, even if he's still considered one of the more lowly in the pecking order of the production crew. No-one there but Tony remembers the events of "Smoke and Shadows" and he has chosen not to use the guidebook laptop he was given to develop his powers as a wizard. That power remains all the same and because of it Tony can see the ghosts of two children that haunt the house where the crew are shooting an episdoe of Darkest Night.

There is an evil living in the basement of the house and once it is woken, it is determined to claim as many lives as possible and hopefully gain enough power to break out of its physical prison. Tony and a group of others get trapped inside the house, while Henry and CB, the studio owner, remain impotently frustrated outside.

The story was going well up to this point, but this is where it began to fall apart. Huff takes two of her most powerful characters, if not the actual protagonist of the series, and locks them out of the action, rendering them powerless. If she was going to do that, she might as well have left them out of the book altogether, as this just make me, the reader, as frustrated as the two characters were.

Due to the malevolence of the house, those trapped inside so become panicked and hysterical and the book becomes equally hysterical with them as past murders replay themselves in a way only Tony can see, and everyone begins to turn on everyone else. The "boss's daughters" plot felt equally unnecessary and the girls themselves were beyond annoying. The supposed romantic subplot of Tony's feelings for second billed star Lee also failed for me, as suddenly everyone knew how he felt, with the possible exception of Lee himself and no-one seemed particulary to care, which while it might make for an ideal reaction from the rest of humanity, didn't strike me as particularly realistic, especially with other kinds of prejudice and over-reaction going on.

People die, people apparently go crazy, and while I kept reading, it all just failed to gel for me.

There's been a gap of about three weeks between when I finished the book and when I'm writing this and unfortunately I only seem to be able to remember the book's faults. I did keep reading and I don't remember ever feeling like giving up, so it can't have been all bad. Huff is a solid writer and that carried the book through to the end, but I won't ever be reading it again. I may still read the next one is the series though. This one certainly didn't leave that much of a bad taste in my mouth. I don't know. I'll try to whittle the TBR down some before going back to the library for "Smoke and Ashes".

Fat Books

These days, with my health and concentration impaired, fat books tend to scare me. There's just so much of them and it's intimidating.

So why is it that a large proportion of my TBR shelf is fat books?

I was thinking about this while lying on Marcus' bed trying to get him back to sleep. It's amazing what deep thoughts (or thoughts that seem to be deep) one can have at 4am.

It's because the fat books are (generally) the ones with the most satisfying story. There is time in a fat book to develop characters, develop setting and develop plot to build a world and a story that draws the reader in and takes them on a wonderful adventure.

But they are still long, they still take a lot of time and I still find them kind of scary.

I have my TBR shelf filled with the fantasy books at one end, romance at the other and a few odd-bods in the middle. The fantasy "end" takes up at least 2/3, if not 3/4, of the shelf and it consists primarily of longer books. Those are the ones I want to read. But I keep going to the other end because the books are skinnier and likely to demand less effort.

I guess I just need to take a deep breath and embrace my fat books. After all, fat books need lots of love too.

Personal TBR Challenge

I've found myself a whole lot of wonderful book blogs to read and I'm wasting lots of book reading time doing a lot of blog reading instead.

I see a lot of reading challenges that fascinate me, but with my health being as unpredictable as it is, I'm not really prepared to join up to those and then get stressed if I can't manage it.

So I'm setting up one for myself. I'm going to make a list of five books from my TBR and challenge myself to read a minimum of one of them this month. Next month, I start with the same list, adding any more I need to make the number back up to five and do the same thing - read a minimum of one for the month. Etc. Etc. Etc.

I'm hoping this will help me tackle the TBR without stressing myself too much. It also isn't cheating to add a book group (most likely FantasyFavorites) book to the list, even if that's the only one from the monthly list I actually manage to read.

So for May (and yes, I know I'm starting a bit late here), the list is:

1. Song of the Beast - Carol Berg
   
2. Queen of the Darkness - Anne Bishop
   
3. Games of Command - Linnea Sinclair
   
4. Sky Coyote - Kage Baker
   
5. Persuasion - Jane Austen
   

Cute Things Marcus Did Today

Posted over at my LJ.

Possessed by the Sheikh by Penny Jordan

Title: Possessed by the Sheikh
Author: Penny Jordan
Published: April 2005
Grade: 5/10

Why I Chose this Book:
I was looking for some very light reading while waiting for Marcus to come through surgery.

Blurb:
Stranded in the sands, Katrina was rescued by a robed man on a horse and taken back to his luxury desert camp. Despite the attraction that sparked between them, the Sheikh thought Katrina was nothing more than a whore. But no way could he leave her to other men. In order to protect her, he would have to marry her! But when he discovered, first hand, that she was a virgin - that changed everything!

My Comments:
I borrowed this from the library to be a quick and easy read while waiting for my son to come out of surgery from having his adenoids and tonsils out. It was quick, and I guess it was easy, but it was also cliched and kind of boring. I wasn't hugely impressed and this quickly ended my Harlequin cateory romance reading kick with a grand total of two books.

I've been reading message boards discussing things in romances that are out of date and annoying and I felt this book contained most of them. So it was interesting for ticking off the various cliches but that was about all.

It did what it was supposed to do - give me something else to think about while sitting waiting - but I won't be rushing out to find more like it.

Heir to the Shadows by Anne Bishop

Title: Heir to the Shadows
Author: Anne Bishop
Published: April 1999
Grade: 10/10

Series: The Black Jewels Trilogy, Book 2

First Line:
The Dark Council reconvened.

Why I Chose this Book:
Easy. I'd been totally hooked by Daughter of the Blood and had no choice but to keep reading.

Blurb:
In Heir to the Shadows, Jaenelle's vampiric, adoptive father, Saetan, and her foster-family of demons shelter her. To restore her memory and emotional balance, they move to Kaeleer, where Jaenelle befriends the kindred--animals with magical and communicative powers--and gathers a circle of young Queens. She also heals Lucivar, Daemon's half-brother, who offers a brother's love and a warrior's fealty. As she recovers strength and memory, Jaenelle resolves to restore Daemon and cleanse Terreille.

My Comments:
Wow, so like the previous volume of the trilogy, this book just blew me away.

Bishop continues the tale of Jaenellle with her growth to adulthood. At the end of Daughter of the Blood, Daemon, Saetan and Cassandra have rescued Jaenelle from Briarwood, too late to prevent her rape but soon enough to save her life and for Daemon to save her sanity. Saetan and Cassandra have stolen her away to Kaeler while Daemon was left behind to fight off the villians and barely escaped himself.

Heir to the Shadows opens two years later and while Jaenelle has healed physically, she has remained in a coma. Saetan has, rather forcibly, had himself appointed her guardian and waits, with growing impatience, for her her to wake. She does at the book begins, but she remembers nothing of what happened to her. Daemon, meanwhile, had gone mad in the belief that not only was he responsible for her death, but that he was the one who raped her.

Like its predecessor, this book sounds like it should be grim, dark and horrible, and yet Bishop avoids this. It is the world and the situation that is dark, but not the charcters, despite their power and often, their tempers.

The books skips through the years to end as Jaenelle reaches her majority at 20, but Bishop handles the time jumps deftly and I never felt that the book jarred because of this.

This is Jaenelle's tale, and it focusses on her - her growing understand of what it means to be Witch, her growing use of her power and her frustration to master its basics. But mostly, it is about her relationships with the people around her.

With Saetan, the High Lord of Hell, whom she calls Papa and interacts with both as the child/young woman she is and occasionally as the powerful creation she is under her human mask. With Lucivar who finds a sister in her, and learns trust and loyalty again after centuries of captivity. With the friends she used to sneak off to meet as a child, who we meet in person in this book, human and Kindred both. Each one powerful and influential, these are the ones what will form her court and her power base as, in the last book, she surely forges the new beginning for the Realms she was called into existence to create.

One character who is almost conspicuous by absence is Daemon, who appears and disappears as we saw Tersa do in the first volume, fighting for and losing a hold on sanity. It fits the story, is perfectly appropriate in fact, but his presence is missed all the same. Yet he is the final note in this part of the tale, as he climbs back out of the Twisted Kingdom, whole again and reforged to be the consort Jaenelle will need at the conculsion of the book.

I have always tended to put off things I really want to watch or read, and I have never really been able to figure out why. I have come to realise that it is not a need to save something to keep that anticipation and newness for as long as possible, but something closer to fear. Yet, I've always known it wasn't fear of disappointment. It was while reading this book that I finally figured it out. The stuff I know is going to be good, the stuff I have been waiting for so eagerly; for those things I open wide my arms and throw myself off the cliff into the story. I hold nothing back and fall into the lives of the characters, aching for them, living the tale with them. And when I'm done, it takes me a while to surface again and find my way back to the real world. That's exhausting. It can even hurt. It's so very worth it, but it's not light, easy and distant. No wonder I tend to procrastinate.

This is that kind of book. Absolutely worth it and so much an amazing adventure.

When Darkness Comes by Alexandra Ivy

Title: When Darkness Comes
Author: Alexandra Ivy
Published: January 2007
Grade: 5/10

Series: Guardians of Eternity, Book 1

First Line:
"Oh god, Abby. Don't panic. Just...don't...panic."

Why I Chose this Book:
This was one I saw in the Barbara's Books catalogue and thought looked interesting. However, I just wasn't sure about it, so didn't preorder it. Since I was given some book vouchers for my birthday, I decided to use them on a couple of books that were in my "looks interesting but I'm just not quite sure" category. This was one of the two I chose.

Blurb:
It's been a hell of a day for Abby Barlow. In just a few hours, she's survived an explosion, watched her employer die, had a startling dream, and now she finds herself in a seedy Chicago hotel with the sexy, unearthly Dante, a man she both desires and fears.

For 341 years, Dante has stood as guardian to The Chalice, a mortal woman chosen to hold back the darkness. A terrible twist of fate has now made Abby that woman. Three hours ago, Dante would have used all his charms to seduce her. Now she is his to protect. And he will do so until his very death.

A terrifying plan has been set in motion, one that will plunge Dante and Abby into an epic battle between good and evil—and a desperate race to save their love...

My Comments:
This was a very strange book. It should have had everything to make it great - an interesting and almost new idea, a decent heroine and vampire hero, and some quick and sassay dialogue. The thing is, it totally failed to work. It failed for me and also for a friend I spoke to about it, so I know it wasn't me alone.

When I was reading it it felt like an okay read, but when I put it down, I really didn't care if I picked it up again. I finished it more out of determination than any great need to finish the story.

However, I have no idea why it failed. There was nothing I could put my finger on. It just did. Which makes this review pretty much useful and unhelpful, but I'm afraid I can't me any clearer. I also don't feel the need to waste any more time on it trying to figure out the why of its failure.

Silly Questions...

This week's From Our Blog to Yours from SSD.

question #1 who’s your dreamy dreamy steamy hottie (and hubby’s don’t count) don’t just answer.. post up a picture, I need eye candy!
Tony Head. Okay, so I have a thing for older men. (Even if I married a younger one.) Sue me.

question#2 what is the goofiest thing you’ve said/done this week?
I try hard not to remember things like that. I know I've got mixed up several times and had to be corrected by my three year old. "Silly Mummy" is becoming a common refrain at our house.

question #3 If I (or some random other person, as I can’t really answer this properly otherwise haha) walked into your house RIGHT NOW, what would embarrass you the most (be it an item, a mess, your fridge.. whatever)?
Definitely the wet (but NOT dirty) nappy I haven't thrown out yet.

question #4 what creepy things do you have living (or growing.. ) under your bed (due to lack of cleaning of course )?
Only dust bunnies.

question #5 have you ever done a drive by fart in the super market? Did anyone notice?
No.

question #6 Finish this sentence… If I were a duck__________.
... I wouldn't be able to type.

question #7 google it … dude do it! ” your name is” __
Never interesting for me because I always hit the John Kerry websites. I'm not even American.

question #8 what colour are your underwear?
Blue.

question #9 if you could be with anyone right now, who would it be? why? (I’m not talking dirty here people.. stay with me, focus! lol)
So I'm going to be sappy and go with my husband and son, both of whom I am with now (although said son is standing at his bedroom door crying because he doesn't think he should have to go to bed now).

question #10 close your eyes, what do you see? (well, not SEE see.. obviously, work with me, it’s 230am )
Black. The inside of my eyes are clearly very boring.

My Favorite Earthling by Susan Grant

Title: My Favorite Earthling
Author: Susan Grant
Published: March 2007
Grade: 6/10

Series: Jasper Family, Book 2

First Line:
CALIFORNIA POLITICAN AND ALIEN LOVER SAVE THE WORLD

Why I Chose this Book:
I've been a Susan Grant fan since I read Contact and then started looking for her backlist. I thoroughly enjoyed the series that began with The Star King and I've kept getting her books ever since. This series is much lighter in tone and while I enjoyed the first book and plan to keep reading, I don't think these books have as much to offer.

Blurb:
Keira, warrior-queen of the galaxy, is as famous for her beauty as she is for avoiding marriage. But when an upstart little planet called Earth threatens her world with its fleet of spaceships, the fate of her people lies in her hands. She must bind herself to a barbarian from the rogue world--or face the destruction of her own!

Confirmed bachelor Jared Jasper knows that the trick Earth pulls on the alien invaders isn't a permanent solution. What they need is a peace treaty. It just never occurs to him that he will wind up on the bargaining table. Playing the pushover groom to a mouthy alien babe who knows how to use a plasma sword is not exactly his idea of fun. But with six billion people depending on him, he doesn't have much choice--sleep with the enemy...or bring on interstellar war.

My Comments:
A pleasant enough story, but this isn't one of Grant's best. It's a light romp, and I assume it was always meant to be, so in that way it succeeds nicely.

Jared is a nice character, Keira is okay, but we never really get to know either of them all that well - and they don't even meet until half the book is over.

I really enjoyed myself while reading this - and it was perfect for the mood I've been in lately - so I don't want to sound like I'm completely knocking this book. It's a pleasant, light read and if that's what you're in the mood for, it'll be idea. If you're wanting more than that, look for something else.

Matrimony with His Majesty by Rebecca Winters

Title: Matrimony with His Majesty
Author: Rebecca Winters
Published: May 2002
Grade: 7/10

First Line:
"Since the last two major college riots, we have to take what happened today seriously, Alex. I'm urging you to move yourself and your loved ones to one of your residences in the mountains away from the public where you're not so vulnerable."

Why I Chose this Book:
It came through my RSS feeds as a new release from Fictionwise.com. I hate to admit that royalty stories tend to catch my attention. This one sounded like it might be okay and I bought it and downloaded it.

Blurb:
Darrell Collier is an ordinary, small-town single mom. And when Alexandre Valleder sweeps into her life, she's determined not to be pressured into marriage by royal command!

Alex is a good ruler and a responsible king. But one secret night, years ago, he rebelled a little. The result, as he's just discovered, was a child. Now he has to make things right. It will shock his family and shake up the monarchy. But first he must persuade this beautiful, stubborn commoner she has the makings of a queen!

My Comments:
This was a light, but pleasant and delightful little story. It was perfect for my mood of the moment, where I'm very low on energy and need a break from my more complicated current read.

Everyone is a little too perfect - the 12 year old with a chip on his shoulder about not knowing his father gets over it and adores Alex much too quickly for example - but I went into this for an escapist fantasty and that's exactly what I got.

Alex is heroic and noble and perfect and Darrel spends all her time tryig to do what is best for everyone else, but again, they fit perfectly in this lovely little tale.

I'm embarrassed to admit it, but I'm a sucker for royalty stories. I like the fantasy of it (the reality I suspect can be pretty awful) and that's a lot of what got me to pick this one up. I'm glad I did. It was exactly what I needed at the time and I'm going to read and enjoy some more Rebecca Winters books I'm sure.

Some Book Links

Olive has had another adventure:
The Bold Ascent - The Further Aventures of Olive

A lovely story:
In Which Our Heroine Gets Hit On By a Three Year Old

RIP Black Car

Our old and faithful car died today. Details on my livejournal to save the double post.

A Kiss to Remember by Teresa Medeiros

Title: A Kiss to Remember
Author: Teresa Medeiros
Published: May 2002
Grade: 7/10

Series: Fairy Tales, Book 3 and/or Fairleighs, Book 1

First Line:
Sterling Harlowe had to draw up an ottoman and stand on tiptoe to peek out the drawing room window.

Why I Chose this Book:
You know, I can't remember. I put a reserve on it at the library, and I don't really remember why now. I read Teresa Medeiros' posts over at Squawk Radio and I suspect it was after reading one of those that I decided to try out one of her books. I've read one before, After Midnight, and enjoyed it, but decided on a plain historical romance instead of more vampires in the sequel to AM.

Blurb:
Laura Fairleigh is playing with fire. With only three weeks in which to marry in order to gain the title to Arden Manor, the house she and her younger siblings are living in, the penniless beauty has no time for romantic dreams. She must seize any opportunity for matrimony -- before she loses her chance to keep her benefactor's prodigal son, the notorious Duke of Devonbrooke, from taking possession of her home. When fate presents her with an amnesic Adonis in the woods nearby, Laura is determined to convince the injured stranger that he is, in fact, her loving fiancé and hurry him to the altar. She's chilled to discover that the nameless man is in fact the dreaded duke, who will not be pleased to learn that he's been played for a fool -- even by a beautiful captor who has fallen in love with him in the process. Laura has only one chance to secure her future happiness. Somehow, before their rapidly approaching wedding night, she must win the heart of this rake who has a reputation to rival the Devil himself.

My Comments:
I have a love/hate relationship with anmesia and mistaken identity stories. On one level, the whole "being someone else" thing appeals to me, but the deception required doesn't. So I liked this story, but couldn't quite love it - even though it was (I a little embarrassed to admit) the amnesia that made me choose this particular book.

If well done - and I'm still a little on the fence about that in this case - the characters should have good reasons for beginning and/or carrying on the deception. That doesn't mean there won't be trouble when the truth comes out, but with time there can be understanding as well.

Laura's course of action is a little extreme, but plausible within the context of the story. The delevloping romance between her and "Nicholas" is nice and the revelation of his true identity well done.

Sterling's fury at being deceived is entirely reasonable and seeing them eventually working it all out was nice to read.

I think part of the problem is that Medeiros had to fit two romances in a single, relatively short novel. Both of them are between the hero and heroine, but they are quite different as they first fall in love as Laura and Nicholas, and then have to reconnect and do it all again as Laura and Sterling (and then Diana and Thane steal a bit of the story time as well).

Some of the thematic resolution was beautiful. Laura tells Sterling that Nicholas was the man he might have been if his life had been different, which was a lovely way to look at the two incarnations of the man, as I don't believe you can fail to be true to your fundamental self, even if you don't remember who that is. With his emotional baggage taken away, Sterling had a time to find that fundamental self.

His apology to Laura for making her his wife and treating her like his mistress was a lovely realisation for him to have - and something a few more romance heroes could do with figuring out.

All in all, an enjoyable read. I'll certainly be happy to read Medeiros again.

Catching Up On Some Book Comments - Mar 07

Thunderbird Falls - C. E. Murphy (6/10)Really, all I can say is "Meh". Not bad, but certainly not great either. I read the first half, then got kind of bored and skim read to the end. It's a very good premise, but I don't think the execution works for me.

Born to be BAD - Sherrilyn Kenyon (5/10)
Pointless really, but kind of fun. Just a quick time filler for me.

Date Me Baby, One More Time - Stephanie Rowe (8/10)
Silly, but fun.

Blood Price - Tanya Huff (9/10)
A story that stands up beautifully even 15 years after it was written. I thoroughly enjoyed this reread and may have to go on with rereading the rest of the series now. My only problem was that I kept expecting the characters to pull out cell phones and they didn't all have them.

Full Moon Rising - Keri Arthur (DNF)
Lots of people recommended this book (and the series it begins) to me and it certainly sounded like something I would enjoy. There was nothing wrong with what I read either, I just didn't get captured enough by it to continue. I have been told that it takes a while to get going, so on another occasion when I more in the mood, I suspect I might get further and find I really liked it. But for now I'm putting it aside until that other occasion.

Catching Up On Some Book Comments - Feb 07

Protector of the Flight - Robin D. Owens (7/10)
This took a long time to really get going and I found the section where Calli first arrived to be a bit by the numbers. Once she and Marrec started disagreeing the story started moving much better and the final section was excellent.

Catching up on some book comments - Jan 07

I set up a new blog the other day - Lists and Such - where I am planning to leave some static reference pages like my TBR pile/mountain, books I've read in each month, that kind of thing. While starting the list of books read for Jan 07, I found that I have some short comments on some of those books posted on Library Thing, so I'm going to pop them in here, mostly so that I can link to this post on the one over there.

The Marriage Spell - Mary Jo Putney (DNF)
I actually really enjoyed what I read of this. It's just that around half way, I got distracted and skimmed ahead to find out what happened. After that, I didn't feel interested enough to read properly through to the end of the book. So don't let this review or rating put you off. This was a nice book in a nice setting that I think I would have really enjoyed and possibly recommened at a different time.

Demon Angel - Meljean Brook (8/10)
In a very ambitious first novel, Brook pulls off most of the things I suspect she set out to achieve. She has created a fascinating, complicated world and peopled it with equally fascinating characters.

Readers briefly met Lilith and Hugh in Brook's entry in the "Hot Spell" anthology. Here, their history is fleshed out in a series of short pieces that bring us up to the current day, where the main story begins.

Lilith is a demon bound to tempt humans to their own destruction; Hugh is a Guardian, bound to protect those same humans from the likes of Lilith. For all that, there is something between them from the first time they met when Hugh is still human, a naive 17 year old in the reign of King John with an innocence Lilith is sent to destroy. He in turn becomes determined to save her soul.

Eight hundred years later, Hugh is no longer a Guardian and Lilith is bound to kill him. None of this makes an easy beginning for a love story, but Brook crafts a lovely one here.

There are first time author problems in this book, mostly in pacing and clarity. Sometimes I struggled to be sure just what was going on - especially with all the bargains and wagers and complicated motivations floating around - and I remain unsure if that was my lack of understanding or the auhtor's lack of clarity. I expect the truth lies somewhere in between.

I thoroughly enjoyed this and I know I'll be buying more of Brook's work in future.

Crossing the Line - Trista Ann Michaels (8/10)
I like this series. Nice world building (although as a sf/f reader I would love more detail about it and its history), very engaging characters, hot sex and the hint of lots more tales to tell. I'm going back to read book one now.

Bound to Trust - Jaci Burton (7/10)
I chose this one to fit the mood in and because it looked like it might be fun. It was. Amusing but without any major depth, although the characters were appealing.

Star Crossed - Trista Ann Michaels (8/10)
I read book 2 of this series first, mostly for something to try and found I liked it. I went back to book one and I liked this one even more. To quote my comments on "Crossing the Line": I like this series. Nice world building (although as a sf/f reader I would love more detail about it and its history), very engaging characters, hot sex and the hint of lots more tales to tell.

Natural Born Charmer by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

Title:Natural Born Charmer
Author: Susan Elizabeth Phillips
Published: Feb 2007
Grade: 7/10

Series: Chicago Stars/Bonner Brothers, Book 7

First Line:
It wasn’t every day a guy saw a headless beaver marching down the side of a road, not even in Dean Robillard’s larger than life world.

Why I Chose this Book:
I've heard a lot of romance readers mention Susan Elizabeth Phillips are her books always sound kind of fun. When I do read romance, I read paranormal or historical, so I wanted to give a contemporary one. This is SEP's latest and it was in the library, so I decided to give it a go.

Blurb:
When millionaire Dean Robillard meets Blue Bailey, she couldn't be more down on her luck; her ex has stolen all her money and she's got no place to go. A football hero, Dean is taking a holiday while recovering from a career-threatening injury. He'd planned a solo road trip to get his head together. The last thing he needs is a damsel in distress tagging along for the ride. However, despite Dean's misgivings the two find themselves thrown together and soon Blue has moved into his home and is merrily turning his world upside down. Their attraction is mutual but can their relationship really survive when the only other thing they have in common is their distrust of love?

My comments:
This was a fun read.

Phillips has a snappy, cheerful writing style that flowed into her story, even when it was covering less than cheerful moments.

Both the hero and heroine were immediately interesting people - Blue with her odd name and her beaver costume, and Dean who is so initially amused by her. Their dialogue is immediately snappy, yet each seems to have an instinctive understanding of the other. The story soon shows that they both have more problems understanding themselves.

While Dean and Blue are the stars of the book, Phillips makes all the background characters fun and interesting as well. I did feel that this was occasionally to Blue and Dean's disadvantage as some time that could have been used getting to know them better was sacrificed for the sake of the secondary characters.

Since those secondary characters made a sparkling cast I didn't really mind. Each one of them made an impression and it was nice to see them grow towards their own happy endings as Dean and Blue worked on theirs.

By biggest complaint was that I sometimes got a tell-not-show feeling from the text - not in regards to the plot, but in terms of the progression of Dean and Blue's realtionship. I felt I knew what was developing between them more because the text told me, than because I could see it for myself. But at the same time, I bought into it completely, and was very happy to see them happy together.

I can't really explain it, I think there was just a slight feeling of something not having been done quite as well as it could have been. But that didn't stop me liking the book and I'll happily read more of Susan Elizabeth Phillips.

Nita Garrison was a wonderful character, and quite delightfully real. On first meeting she's a nasty old lady, but as time progresses we see what's hidden underneath, and that she keeps underneath instead of miraculously opening up and becoming sunshine and light as might have been done with her. Yet it is easy to believe it when Blue reveals that she's been anonomously helping the needy in the community for years.

So while I haven't given this a really high grade, mostly due to that elusive "something missing" feeling I'm left with, I really enjoyed the book. I read past my bedtime last night and had to make a conscious decision to stop instead of just keeping going until I was finished and paying for it in the morning.

I like SEP and I'm sure I'll be reading more of her work, although probably from the library at this point.

The Green and the Gray by Timothy Zahn

Title: The Green and the Gray
Author: Timothy Zahn
Published: 2004
Grade: 8/10

First Line:
The sun had long since set behind the trees of Riverside Park, on the western edge of Manhattan Island, and the lights of the New Jersey coastline were glittering on the Hudson River.

Why I chose this book:
I considered this when I saw it in my bookseller's catalogue as it was being published in paperback. I thought the story looked interesting and I knew I found Zahn nicely readable after reading his Star Wars trilogy a number of years ago. But I didn't have the budget to take the chance at the time, so I let it be. When I saw this on the shelf in the library, I grabbed it, happy to be able to read the story after all.

Blurb:
For seventy-five years the Greens and the Grays have lived quietly among us in the shadows of New York, alien refugees from a war of attrition that utterly destroyed the rest of their kind. Passing as everyday citizens, yet with powers and technologies unknown to humanity, each group has long believed that they are all that remain of their old world and their terrible conflict.

But now, to their mutual surprise, they have found each other, and the old hatreds and fears have once again risen to the surface.

And each side is preparing again for war.

On a cold October night, Roger and Caroline Whittier, a young couple struggling with their marriage, are accosted at gunpoint, and an unexpected burden is thrust upon them: Melantha Green, a twelve-year-old girl snatched from the hands of a peace coalition consisting of both Greens and Grays. The coalition had been preparing to cold-bloodedly sacrifice her in a last-ditch effort to prevent the impending battle...and it desperately wants her back.
As Roger and Caroline strive to protect Melantha and to understand the alien cultures they have suddenly been thrust into, they find aid in unlikely places. They're joined in their efforts by NYPD Detective Thomas Fierenzo, who's determined to prevent what he believes to be an impending gang war, and by Otto Velovsky, a former Ellis Island clerk who was present at the very beginning of the aliens' new life on earth.

Unlikely allies,unlikely heroes...and they have just one week to find a way to prevent New York City from becoming a battlefield the likes of which the world has never known...

My comments:
I certainly wouldn't have thought I'd wasted my money if I had paid for this. There are three phases to the story here, and the first and third appealed to me most.

The story starts as Roger and Caroline, New Yorkers with a stumbling marriage, are walking home from a night at the theatre. They suddenly find themselves guarding a young girl whole has marks on her throat to suggest someone has just tried to strangle her.

As they try to find out what has happened to Melantha and what they should do next, the questions get more and more puzzling until they find themselves unravelling a strange mystery with an answer they can't quite believe - that two factions from a war on another planet have settled in Manhattan and having recently discovered each other's presence, are about to renew their war. With Melantha as a bargaining chip in between.

Roger and Caroline become futher embroiled in the building danger and are forced to rediscover each other and their own personal strengths as they attempt to find a way to prevent extra-terrestrial war from exploding in the middle of New York.

The book has a copyright date of 2004 and there is a clear resonance here to the attacks of 911 and the hold that day has left in the New York skyline and psyche. It's is laboured, just touched upon, but the link is there and I feel it strengthens the book rather than making light of such real life tragedy. (Although, I accept that as a non-American I may read that differently than some other readers would.)

I thorougly enjoyed the first half of the book, as Roger and Caroline, along with a New York detective working on an initially seperate track of investigation, slowly unravel the mystery of Melantha and the Greens and the Grays. However, I found myself feeling rather bogged down in the third quarter as that time was spent mostly of figuring out everyone's motives, tactics and lies. Once that was fairly much sorted and the action got underway again to try to stop the brewing war, I felt the story picked up again and I was soon enjoying the ride again.

This isn't a world shattering novel, nor does it break a lot of new ground (although the final revelation of the origins of the Greens and Grays was a clever twist). Instead it is an entertaining read with a solid plot and an interesting set of characters. Pick it up, sit yourself down and enjoy the read.

April Plans

Over on From Our Blog 2 Yours at Sweet Shoppe Designs, Aggie asked what people's April plans were going to be. At that point our life was rather in flux and I didn't really have any plans at all. That changed on Saturday, and now I have the major points on the month sorted out.

You see, on Saturday we got a letter from the children's hospital giving us a date for Marcus to have his adenoids and tonsils out. He's had breathing issues from before day one when I was being given steriod shots to fast-track maturation of his lungs when it become clear he was going to be born 13 weeks prematurely.

While he was only on a respirator for about 4 hours, we was on CPAP for 6 weeks or so and on low-flow air for the better part of another month. All his prematurity issues have related around this or side-effects of this.

Many have resolved themselves or been corrected but the latest (and hopefully the last) is taking out his adenoids and tonsils. He'll have to stay in for at least 24 hours as they monitor how his breathing adjusts to having the obstruction removed as right now the pressure involved is really high and he'll have to learn to breathe at a lower pressure.

He has to be at the hospital at 7.30am on 18th April.

We had been waiting to find out the date before making Easter plans, but now we have it we're going to go down and stay with family for Easter before coming back up here and getting ourselves ready for the operation.

He has a busy week before the op, with a meeting with his Early Intervention Assessor on the Monday, an appointment with his Speech Therapist on the Tuesday and then hospital and the operation on Wednesday. (And the kid is only three!)

Then he needs to stay home for at least 10 days to recover and adjust, which takes us up to the end of the month. Since I usually use his daycare days to get some rest to recover from his home days, this is going to be hard on both of us. Dave is taking the rest of that first week off so we'll both be home on the first few days, which will be good. After that, we'll have to see how we manage.

So we've got a busy and, for me at least, slightly scary April ahead of us.

But if this does as much good as everyone hopes (Marcus sleeping properly which means Kerry and Dave sleeping properly and an improvement in Marcus' oxygen uptake and hopefully his speech as well) it will be well worth it all.

I'm Sorry

I'm Sorry
Originally uploaded by rocalisa.

For the Sweet Shoppe Designs Sugar Free Challenge #9 (28 Mar 2007)

Regrets

Journalling~
Last week, I saw the ENT for the results of your oximetry test. He said that while your breathing issues weren't critical, your oxygen uptake was really quite bad and he wants to take out your adenoids and tonsils as soon as possible. He wants to do it at Starship because they have an ICU on hand if it is needed. You see, the pressure is so high when you breathe that your body will need time to adjust to the smaller effort required to breathe once the obstruction is removed. There is a very small chance that this could lead to you dragging fluid into your lungs at first before you adjust. They will need to monitor you, and take you to ICU if that does happen.
Last night, you were upset and I let you fall asleep in our bed with me. I was lying there, listening to you breathe and I realised that I could hear how hard you were working to draw air into your lungs with each breath. I am just horrified that I didn't figure this out months ago. It's been like this since you were little, you've been having apneas all along as well, but because I'd got used to that when you were in the NICU, I just ignored it and chalked it up to being normal for you. I am so very, very sorry that I didn't figure it out sooner. I could have done something earlier and made your life so much better before now. I wish I'd been a bit quicker on this, but I wasn't and all we can do now is get on with fixing the problem.

Credits~
Paper from "Sweet Memories" by Nancy Kubo; stamped alpha is "Real Stamped Alpha" by Lisa Whitney; button alpha is "Bubble Alpha" by Stephanie Burt; flower from "Flower Patch" by Dani Mogstad; butterfly from "Felty Flies" by Dani Mogstad; heart from "Beaded Hearts" by Amy Martin; photo frame from "Vintage Frames 2" by Nancy Comelab; font is KGD Kerry Print.

The Artist at Work

The Artist at Work
Originally uploaded by rocalisa.

For the Sweet Shoppe Designs Spin-a-Lift (18 Mar 2007)

This is a spun lift of Dia's Butterfly Bush.

Credits~
Doodled paper from "Prince Edward" by Katie Pertiet; green painted paper from "Artsy Fartsy Vol 1" by Lisa Whitney; yellow painted paper from "Artsy Fartsy Vol 2" by Lisa Whitney; fold template by Karah Fredericks; paint brush and paint strokes from "Brush Strokes" by Kim Hill; paint drops on brush from "Rainy Days and Mondays" by Dani Mogstad; paint splats from "Paint Splats" by Kari Q; doodles by Carrie Bombria; alpha is "Plasticine Alpha" by Nancy Comelab; fonts are Pea Lacy and BabOonjaZzbaSsoOn.

Joy

Joy
Originally uploaded by rocalisa.

For the Sweet Shoppe Designs Cookie Decorating 101 Challenge #5 (28 Mar 2007)

Journalling~
It was a delight to see the joy on your face when we visited Butterfly Creek.

Credits~
Based on A Mother's Heart by Raine O'Dell; template by Teresa Ferguson; butterfly from "Painted Butterflies" by Amber Clegg; right side orange paper from "Love Me Tender" in the "This Love" collection by Dani Mogstad; middle orange paper from "Solids" in the "This Love" collection by Dani Mogstad; left orange paper from "Summer Sunsations" by Jen Reed, Jeanine Baechtold and Krista Mettler; brown journalling paper from "Backyard Explorer" by Lynn Grieveson; scalloped brown paper from "Fudge Dream Supreme" by Robin Carlton and Lauren Grier alpha is from "As Time Goes By" by Megan Willmann; font is KGD Kerry Print.

Butterfly Creek

Butterfly Creek
Originally uploaded by rocalisa.

This is a lift of MandaBean's Papa's Peaches.

Credits~
Everything is by Tracy Ann Robinson. Background paper from "Peek-a-Boo Lovelies"; frame (recoloured), small pink butterfly and spotted tape from "Recall" in the "Memories are Made of This" collection; large purple butterly, flower tape and overlay (altered) from "Recollect" in the "Memories are Made of This" collection; cardboard and flowers from "Revisit" in the "Memories are Made of This" collection. Fonts are Beautiful ES and Beautiful ES Caps.

Books

I have come to realise that I enjoy reading about books almost as much as I enjoy actually reading books.

I can waste hours reading blogs that talk about books.

There are so many books out there that I will never read and this gives me a chance to find out a little more about them. It also introduces me to books I might want to read and sometimes to a new author or series I would never have found otherwise.

But mostly, it just lets me read about books as opposed to reading books.

I don't read a lot of Romance (I mainly read paranormals, which probably shows my fantasy/SF reading roots), but I love reading about it. I love reading the various discussions that rage in blogland about it and I have a bunch of romance blogs on my RSS reader. I especially love Smart Bitches Who Love Trashy Novels which provides a wonderful, healthy dose of snark with intelligent discussion.

Then there are those dangerous things - people's blog lists on their own blogs - which can take me on all sorts of interesting travels to a huge variety of blogs. It was while following the links on Reading Adventures this morning, while conscious that I wasn't actually reading my current novel, that I realised just how much I enjoy reading about books. I'm still exploring all the links Marg has provided and finding several more to add to my RSS feeds.

Between scrapbooking blogs, book blogs and stitching blogs, I spend quite a bit of my time reading what other people have to say. I guess it's no wonder I don't seem to get as many actual books read as I used to do.

A Movie for Readers

Olive's Perilous Habit

Reading Questions

Oooooh, the latest SSD From Our Blog 2 Yours in a series of questions about books and reading. That's my kind of blog entry!

Here you go...

Amazon or brick and mortar?
Both. I mostly buy US imports, which aren't in the standard brick and mortar stores here in NZ as we're part of the UK publishing zone. (I don't totally understand it all, but it means US books generally don't wind up on the mainstream shelves here.} So I shop through the wonderful Barbara's Books here in Auckland, who are importers of US Fantasy, SF and Romance. However, book prices are high here because of the shipping requirements, so I buy my paperbacks from Barbara (whom I also call my "pusher" as she keeps finding new things for me to read) and if there are hardcovers or trade paperbacks I really want, I get those from Amazon through a friend of Dave's who can get them to us here for essentially free shipping, which makes them affordable. That said, I can never resist the urge to browse in a bookshop, even if I'm not going to buy.

Bookmark or dog ear?
Bookmark! Dog earing is the eighth deadly sin. Of course, a bookmark is any scrap of paper or other non-sticky substance I can get my hands on when Marcus is demanding my attention and I need to mark my place. After he managed to break Giles (BtVS) in half, I stopped using my good bookmarks. (I have collected bookmarks in the past.) I'll get them out again when he's older.

Alphabetize by author or alphabetize by title or random?
By author. You mean there's another way?

Keep, throw away, or sell?
Keep. I love books. I am fundamentally incapable of throwing them away, although I do go though and do a cull occasionally and then I give them away or sell them. The current number of books in my book catalogue (which is basically complete barring some of Marcus' books I've forgotten to add in) is 2265.

Keep dust jacket or toss it?
Keep.

Read with dust jacket or remove it?
Remove it. I need to keep it pristine and pretty.

Short story or novel?
Novels. I know there are some fantastic short stories out there, especially by NZ authors who seem to thrive in that form, but I really struggle to read them. I can read a 500 page novel more easily that a 90 page short story.

Harry Potter or Lemony Snicket?
Harry Potter.

Stop reading when tired or at chapter breaks?
When I'm tired or when I need to do something else - which is usually Marcus grabbing the book and saying "Close!" in a very determined voice. Occasionally chapter breaks, but usually not.

“It was a dark and stormy night” or “Once upon a time”?
Can I have "Once upon a time it was a dark and stormy night"?? If I have to choose, it would be "Once upon a time".

Buy or Borrow?
Buy. If I could afford it (and the space in the house that would be required) I'd buy everything. I love books and I love having them around me in the house. For me, a house without books is missing a soul. And if I visit you, I'm sorry, but I won't be able to resist checking out your bookshelves.

New or used?
So long as the quality is good, I don't mind.

Buying choice: book reviews, recommendation or browse?
Some recommendations, some browsing. A lot of books I buy these days are from tried and true authors I love.

Tidy ending or cliffhanger?
Tidy ending please. I don't mind a few threads left to carry on with, but I like to know how everything is going to work out. That said, if it's a series, I want that tidy ending for the series, but don't necessarily need it for each book. Open ended series that go on forever without resolution drive me nuts though. It's okay if the end is a long way away, but I want there to be an end, at least to the current story arc.

Morning reading, afternoon reading or nighttime reading?
Any single moment I can manage. I'm one of those people who buys my handbags based on whether or not they can fit a book in them and carry one around with me all the time. (Plus a couple of extras on my PDA as ebooks if I want something different.)

Stand-alone or series?
Either works for me, but I do love revisiting great worlds and characters, so series probably edges out stand-alone by a nose.

Favorite series?
Catherine Asaro's Skolian books.

Favorite children’s book?
"The Little White Horse" by Elizabeth Goudge

Favorite book of which nobody else has heard?
"Sword of the Lamb"/"Shadow of the Swan"/"House of the Wolf" by M. K. Wren (it's a trilogy that tells a single story, so I've put them together)

Favorite books of all time?
Impossible question to answer, but here are a few favourites:
"The Changeling Sea" by Patricia A. McKillip
"The Radiant Seas" by Catherine Asaro
"Venetia" by Georgette Heyer
"Gaudy Night" by Dorothy L. Sayers
"Memory" by Lois McMaster Bujold
"Checkmate" by Dorothy Dunnett
"The Blue Sword" by Robin McKinley

Least favorite book you finished last year?
So that knocks out the ones I didn't actually finish, huh? Let me see...
"Embroidered Truths" by Monica Ferris according to my Library Thing reading list. The absolute worst, that I didn't finish, was "Dexta" by C.J. Ryan.

What are you reading right now?
"Spellbinder" by Melanie Rawn

What are you reading next?
Probably "Heir to the Darkness" by Anne Bishop, but I won't know for sure until I finish the current book and select the next one off the TBR shelf.

Little Things

Little Things
Originally uploaded by rocalisa.

For the Sweet Shoppe Designs Sugar Free Challenge #8 (21st Mar 2007)

Journalling~
I know it's silly, but these little scars on your hands make my heart hurt each time I catch sight of them. You have them on both hands, and on both your feet as well. They are from all the blood tests, IV lines, heel pricks, blood transfusions and the like that you've had in your little life. When I see them, I remember how hard it was to let people stick so many holes in you, even though I knew how important it was. The very worst was the silly doctor who tried three times to give you a lumbar puncture and three times to put in an IV line and failied at them both. Every time. I know it isn't very Christian of me, but I think there's a small piece of me that hasn't ever forgiven him for that. I know every little scar is a reminder of a procedure that helped ensure you're so big and strong today and that's what I should remember, but a part of my heart still cracks each time I see them. 22nd March, 2007

Credits~
Papers from "Natural Beauty" by Amy Knepper; paper curl from "Curled Paper Edges" by Anna Aspnes; alpha is "Mini Clothes Peg Alpha" by Angela Barton; flower from "Scrap Street Simple Florist" by Jen Wilson; gem is from "Opalettes" by Anna Benjamin; tie down, frame and butterfly from "Be Inspired" by the Sweet Shoppe Designers and Gina Miller; fonts are FG Lova and Gotham Nights.

Metamorphosis

Metamorphosis
Originally uploaded by rocalisa.

For the Sweet Shoppe Designs Sweet Inspiration Challenge #8 (21st Mar 2007)

We bought some swan plants and put them on our deck earlier in the month. Marcus has been fascinated watching the caterpillers grow, then watching each chrysalis until a butterfly appears.

Credits~
Flowers from "Itty Bitty Dotted Blooms" by Melissa Bennett; fonts are Papyrus and Century Gothic.

Stardust

Stardust
Originally uploaded by rocalisa.

For the Sweet Shoppe Designs Recipe Challenge # 5 (21st Mar 2007)

Credits~
Heart from "Everyday Romance" in the "This Love" collection by Dani Mogstad; ribbon from "Loop 'D' Loop" by Paula Duncan; bow from "Mini Bowz" by Anna Benjamin; title art from "Layered Titles - Baby" by Robin Carlton; everything else from "A Baby Boy Story" (both versions) by Jen Reed; font is Mom's Typewriter.