Earth Bound is here!

Read Chapter 1 {HERE}

"After escaping from a cult, Lexi found refuge with her sisters on the farm that more than sustained her body—it nurtured her soul as well. But she never forgot the terror she left behind or the always present fear that the cult would find her again, and claim her. Then her nightmare came true.

Lexi was discovered and threatened—only to be suddenly saved by a stranger. He is Gavriil Prakenskii, and he’s awestruck by the woman he’s rescued. She is destined for him. He can feel it in his soul. But how can Lexi find happiness with a man steeped in secrets and shadows, one intimately acquainted with violence, and whose very love could be the death of them?"

After weeks of waiting for it, and pre-ordering it last month, I finally got my hands on the latest book in the Sea Haven series by Christine Feehan in the post this week!

Yes, I can now continue on with the Prakenskii brothers - and we're getting closer to them meeting the Drakes by what I read in Earth Bound ;-D

I'll post a review of this soon, but I just couldn't wait to tell you how much I enjoyed this book.  Full of action, magic, and a bad case of insta-love - which seems to be popping up more frequently in this series (not such a fan of that aspect), but the story of Lexi and Gavriil was very fast paced and just sucked me in.  

If this is something you would like to try, then I'm sorry but you'll have to read ALL seven Drake Sisters series books before starting on the Sea Haven (or Sisters of the Heart as it is alternatively known as in some countries) series.  There are so many references to previous books that you would miss out on a lot if you just dove into the Sea Haven series first.  

Start soon as next year will see the release of the second last book in this series... and I can't wait!

Until next time,

T5W || Favourite non-book items on shelves

Good morning my lovelies!  Sorry I'm a day late, but wrists were sore after yesterday's session so I didn't get a chance to post this.

This week we have been set a slightly different task - to find our favourite non-book items that we all love to display on our bookshelves.  At the moment I do not have a huge amount of stuff on my shelves as I've had to double up, and in some cases triple, the rows of books on my bookcases so that I don't have piles of books sitting on the floor.  However, I do have some of my favourite knick-knacks on one of my bookshelves so I knew exactly what I was going to show you today ;-D

I hope you like them...

I picked this deer antler up at the Garden Expo last year.  It wasn't expensive, but I liked the way it looked on my wood shelves when it sits with some of the other items on this list ;-D

Have to cut back on the typing, doctor's orders

PS - had to take this photo 4 times to finally get one that wasn't fuzzy!

The worst thing about getting older is the sense that you are falling apart.  Well, at least that's how I'm feeling at the moment.  Over the past 18 months I've been having trouble with my feet - turns out is was plantar fasciitis - and with my right wrist.  For the longest time I was told it was just tendonitis.  I have a brace for it as the pins and needles at night were excruciatingly painful.  Then my left wrist started to display the same symptoms.  I had an ultrasound scan on them a few weeks ago, and it turns out that I have carpal tunnel in both wrists.  I don't do things by halves, do I?

Winter is a particularly unpleasant time, as the cold weather is making my wrists (and ankle) rather stiff and sore.  Hopefully now that I know what it is I can finally get either some physio, or in the future surgery if needed, to make this very painful and irritating condition go away.

Why am I telling you this?

Well, for starters, it means that typing out long reviews or posts is very hard.  Taking photos is a pain as I find that I get the shakes and end with fuzzy pictures... I hate that!  It also means that reading has become a bit of a marathon as holding a book for hours, and turning the pages if I hold it in one hand, can set of hours of pain in my wrists.  However, with a little bit of ingenuity - and a small travel neck pillow - I now have a small book holder that helps at times.

So if I don't post anything for a week or so you know know why.  I'm taking the doctors advice and resting my wrists.  Totally inconvenient when there are also house chores to be done, but I'd rather be a bit behind in my laundry then suffering through hours of pins and needles that leave me feeling like my hand has just been skinned!

But I will be soldiering on and adding reviews, photo's and stuff... I'll just be a tad slow about it.  I love uploading photo's and even if only one person comments, then I'm happy ;-D

Until next time,

Oh, I'll try to have my Top 5 Wednesday post up tomorrow.  

T5W || Chapter Headings

This has been perhaps the hardest T5W topic for me so far.  After looking through two shelves, and through the huge pile that is my TBR, I found only a handful of books with Chapter Headings.  Plenty of quotes, and things along those lines, but chapter headings were very rare indeed.

So, after a few days of wracking my brain trying to find books - I even roped my in my mum on the search (perfect time for a visit) - I finally came up with something for this weeks topic.  I hope you enjoy it...

click to enlarge

As you can tell, most of my chapter headings came from the Steampunk genre - thank you Gail Carriger! 

(#5) Chapter 7, Soulless - Gail Carriger

I think this chapter heading gives you a real sense of what you'll find in Soulless, and the Parasol Protectorate in general.  Quirky and fun, an interesting chapter heading.

(#4) Chapter 10, God Save the Queen - Kate Locke

I chose "Curiouser and Curiouser" (#4) because I have a think about Alice in Wonderland, and the way it has been embraced by pop culture.  Also this heading does fit in with the story.  Another quirky and amazing Steampunk trilogy.

(#3) Lesson 5, Etiquette & Espionage - Gail Carriger

I think that this is pretty self explanatory as to why I chose it ;-P

(#2) Chapter 18, Timeless - Gail Carriger

I loved this chapter heading.  It just caught my eye.

(#1) Chapter 20, Grave Concerns - Gwen Hunter

How could you go past this one? 

Woo-hoo!  I finally got this post up ;-D

This took f o r e v e r and I am so glad that it is finally done, and I can put it behind me.  If you have any fun or quirky chapter headings, I'd love to know what they are.  Please let me know in the comment section.

And, as always, T5W was created by the lovely Lainey at GINGERREADSLAINEY and I'll include a link to the Goodreads group {HERE} if you would also like to participate. 

Until next time,

A Sneek Peek at Don'ts for Wives (1913)

 

Don'ts for Wives

Blanche Ebbutt

Original publication date: 1913

Facsimile edition: 2007

A&C Black, Ltd., Hardcover, 80p.

ISBN: 9780713687903

I stumbled across this interesting little book when I took my mum to the local bookshop last week.   The vintage cover caught my eye, and I bought it after flicking through a few pages.  

Don'ts for Wives is a very amusing and often relevant book of advice, that has been reprinted from the original 1913 hardcover.  Yes, I finally have my first facsimile edition (with original cover design) and I didn't even realise it. 

T5W || Characters you wish you could drown

Hello, once again!  I hope you are enjoying your morning.  I'm freezing my fingers off - Winter is finally setting in - and so to get back to my hot water bottle, I'm just going to dive right in.

This week we discover all those characters we wish we could drown.  The mean, the nasty and the just plain horrible.  Meet the characters I'll be sending down to meet Davey Jones ;-D

Last books of June

Just a quick update from my phone (sorry about the messy format. I wish blogger would address this issue) to show you the latest books I have added to my bookshelves.

On Saturday I dropped by a local charity shop and found The Dark Griffin by K.J. Taylor.  This is the first book in The Fallen Moon trilogy.  I've been looking for this book for almost 18 months, but nothing - well, not for a reasonable price anyway - and there it was.  Practically the first thing I saw.  So lucky to find this.

Next, at the same charity shop, I saw a copy of Winds of Fate by Mercedes Lackey.  Cover is so colorful and stylized that I had to get it.  I'm sure I'll enjoy it as I do love fantasy.

And finally, my postman dropped off my copy of The Quick by Lauren Owen yesterday.  This sounds like an interesting story, a Victorian Gothic mystery from what I remember.

I still have one more book I'm expecting in the mail this week.  A steampunk if I remember correctly.  Then I need to pre-order two books for series I'm reading.  A neverending cycle ;-D

T5W || Books You Read in One Sitting

Welcome to another Top 5 Wednesday!  This week we had to find out 5 favourite books that we read in one sitting - and let me tell you, as someone who usually does read all their books in one sitting, it was hard.

I went through my shelves, and finally decided not to go with the biggest, or most impressive books, but the ones that I enjoyed the most.  Turns out that I really enjoy Urban Fantasy/Fantasy books as only one of my books didn't contain a fantasy/paranormal element.  Huh, guess I should have included a classic for diversity's sake, but these were my most enjoyable reads. 

Enjoy!

Tuesday was a really good reading day

Usually I read one book, perhaps re-read another, depending on what my mood is like.  However on Tuesday I had a great reading day!  I received Dead Ice in the mail, and started that before lunch.  I powered through it in about 5 hours - perhaps 5½ hours - and was pleasantly surprised as to how much I enjoyed it after recent disappointments in the Anita Blake series.

Then I pulled Uprooted by Naomi Novik from my TBR shelves.  It took a little while to get into the swing of things, but I really enjoyed this book.  Would have loved to keep reading, especially with the ending we got.  Will have a review up soon.

As if that wasn't enough (I'd just read 1011 pages!), I decide to start on another book.  The City's Son by Tom Pollock.  This book has been on my TBR bookshelf for more than 6 months.  I don't know why I chose this book, but I'm so glad I did.  I enjoyed my romp through the bowels of London.  Fighting iron wolves and seeing the amazing characters that Pollock created out of the industrial landscape. My only problem was that I don't have books 2 or 3 in the trilogy.  I hate when that happens!

By the time I closed the book and turned off my light it was about 11pm.  I think my eyes were dragging on the ground - in the sand!  But it was worth it.

So on Tuesday I read a total of 3 books or 1468 pages!  That's longer than The Lord of the Rings!  Wow, very proud of myself {patting myself on the back}.

NOTE: I woke up the next morning and my eyes were so sore that I just sat and watched Penny Dreadful all afternoon.  Couldn't read a darn thing!  Fingers crossed that I can finally jump into my TBR shelves again ;-D

Until next time,

 

Book Review || Dead Ice by LKH

Dead Ice
Anita Blake #24
Laurell K. Hamilton

Published: 09 June, 2015

Berkley, hardcover, 576p.
ISBN: 978-0-425-25571-1

Anita Blake has the highest kill count of any vampire executioner in the country. She’s a U.S. Marshal who can raise zombies with the best of them. But ever since she and master vampire Jean-Claude went public with their engagement, all she is to anyone and everyone is Jean-Claude’s fiancée.

It’s wreaking havoc with her reputation as a hard ass—to some extent. Luckily, in professional circles, she’s still the go-to expert for zombie issues. And right now, the FBI is having one hell of a zombie issue.

Someone is producing zombie porn. Anita has seen her share of freaky undead fetishes, so this shouldn’t bother her. But the women being victimized aren’t just mindless, rotting corpses. Their souls are trapped behind their eyes, signaling voodoo of the blackest kind.

It’s the sort of case that can leave a mark on a person. And Anita’s own soul may not survive unscathed . . .

T5W || Multiple POVs

Bonjour!, and welcome to another T5W.  This week we were set the trickier task of finding books with mulitple POVs.  It took me forever to find five books with more than 2 or 3 characters through which we follow the story.

After much scouring of my shelves - and a little help from Goodreads - I finally came up with a list.

 

5.  Throne of Glass was the first - or final - book on my list.  We follow multiple characters, but I didn't enjoy it as much as I did the following books.

4.  While it doesn't happen very often, during this series Meg, Simon, Henry, sometimes Tess, Vlad and even the police characters get a scene of two.

3.  Had to add this book, but it's still on my TBR pile.  I know we follow multiple characters, and that was good enough for me.

2.  Great fantasy series.  Love that we follow the story through about 5 characters.  Jaenelle, Saetan, Daemon, Yaslana and occasionally a snippet from other characters.  So good ;-D

1.  One of the ultimate POV books.  Follow Frodo, Sam, Merry, Pippin and Aragorn, plus others as you journey through Middle Earth.

I hope you enjoyed my Top 5 list.  Next week's should be easier to compile... I hope ;-D  Let me know if you agree with my list - or what books you would add instead - in the comment section below.

And, as always, T5W was created by the lovely Lainey at GINGERREADSLAINEY and I'll include a link to the Goodreads group {HERE} if you would also like to participate. 

Until next time,

 

Dead Ice has arrived!

My postman just delivered a package to my door.  It was my pre-order of Dead Ice by Laurell K. Hamilton.  This is book number twenty-something in the Anita Blake series.  I read the sample chapter at the end of Jason {READ MY REVIEW HERE} and it sounded so good.   

Bought this from Book Depository, and it was a little expensive at just over $32, but I just had to have it.  I wanted this cover to match my other books, and Australian book shops don't stock this edition.  Isn't it so pretty.  The endpapers are just so gorgeous, and completely unexpected.  Total bookgasm ;-D

Hopefully I can start this some time today.  Fingers crossed that we're back into RPIT/animator mode with little to no ardeur action.

Until next time,

 

T5W || Favourite Books of the Year... So Far

Sorry this post is going to be super short - as well as super late.  I'd hoped to get it up on Friday, but the internet was not talking to me (and Photoshop has been playing up).  What are you gonna do?

This week we are listing the top 5 books that we've read so far this year.  I'd love to be able to add some of the gorgeous hardcovers I've been accumulating, but I just haven't gotten around to reading many of them yet.  Perhaps I'll be able to add them for my favourite books of the year.

Anyway here goes.  So without further ado, here are my favourite books of the year... so far.

I had to add Fuzzy Nation, not only because I loved it, but because it has been one of the best recommendations I've received from Booktube.  Thanks Lindsey @angelaudacity!

I hope you enjoyed my Top 5 selections.  I'd love to hear from you if you have any questions or comments.  Have you read any of these books?  Let me know down below.

And, as always, T5W was created by the lovely Lainey at GINGERREADSLAINEY and I'll include a link to the Goodreads group {HERE} if you would also like to participate. 

Until next time, my lovelies

Upcoming series review

In the coming weeks, or perhaps months, I'm finally going to review the Stephanie Plum series.  A huge task as there will be twenty-two books by November (and I hope I've caught up by then!), but I have enjoyed this series so much over the years that I thought it was about time to actually review all the books.  There are one or two books that I have mentioned in this blog before, but I won't be looking at those reviews and instead will be reviewing them with fresh eyes - as I'll be re-reading the whole series again!  Oh boy, what have I got myself into. . .

Book Review || Steal the Dragon

Steal the Dragon
Sianim Quartet, Book 3
Patricia Briggs

This edition published: 2008
Originally released: November, 1995

ACE Fantasy, mass market, 275p.
ISBN: 978-0-441-00273-3

Slave.  Swordwielder.  Spy.  Some girls have all the luck...

When Rialla was young, slave traders from Darran ambushed her clan, killing all the men and enslaving the women and children. For years, Rialla lived in bondage, until she escaped and fled to the mercenary nation of Sianim.

Now she can strike back at her former masters. A lord in Darran seeks to outlaw slavery—but there are plots to kill him before he can. Rialla is chosen by the Spymaster of Sianim to prevent the murder—and is plunged into a world of deadly magic.

At a glance...

First and foremost, I do love the new cover.  The original was a little too much 80's fantasy movie for me, and because of that, I was a little hesitant about purchasing this book.  Why?  Well, because each time I visited one of the online bookshop I use, all they showed was the old cover.  I have the rest of the Quartet in the re-issued covers and I really wanted to have a matching set.  But when I couldn't see the new cover, I just ordered it.  I'd just have to live with a mis-matched set.  

Thankfully when my order arrived on Friday this was the cover that greeted me when I opened the parcel.  With it's eye catching colours - and the action pose of model - it made me very eager to start reading this immediately... which I did ;-D