Archangel's Enigma cover art!

Just stumbled across the cover art for Archangel's Enigma, the 8th book in the Guild Hunters series by Nalini Singh.  I love this series, and although this is the first cover not to feature the character, I love the way he peaks through the claw marks.  From the synopsis {below} Naasir's story sounds amazing.  He's such a mysterious character - as are his origins (which are touched on in Archangel's Shadow) - and I'm hoping to read more on the Elena & Raphael front as well.  Truly, I can't wait to have this book in my hands.  Nalini Singh has created such an amazing series.  I recommend it to anyone who loves Urban Fantasy ;-D

Archangel's Enigma

Naasir is the most feral of the powerful group of vampires and angels known as the Seven, his loyalty pledged to the Archangel Raphael. When rumors surface of a plot to murder the former Archangel of Persia, now lost in the Sleep of the Ancients, Naasir is dispatched to find him. For only he possesses the tracking skills required—those more common to predatory animals than to man.

Enlisted to accompany Naasir, Andromeda, a young angelic scholar with dangerous secrets, is fascinated by his nature—at once playful and brilliant, sensual and brutal. As they race to find the Sleeping archangel before it’s too late, Naasir will force her to question all she knows...and tempt her to walk into the magnificent, feral darkness of his world. But first they must survive an enemy vicious enough to shatter the greatest taboo of the angelic race and plunge the world into a screaming nightmare…

Archangel's Enigma is due for release on the 01 September 2015

Be sure to pre-order so you don't miss out!

Until next time,

 

T5W | Books I'd save in a fire

Sorry to keep it so short and to the point this week.  I just couldn't make up my mind as to which of my hundreds of books I'd save {more like which authors book's I'd save instead!}.

I hope you enjoyed my Top 5 Books I'd save in a fire, and if you want to know more about Top 5 Wednesday - or would like to participate - then head on over to the Goodreads group {here}.  This series was created by the lovely Lainey at GINGERREADSLAINEY and she has some great lists.

If you have any questions or comments please feel free to leave them down below.

Until next time,

 

Childhood scary movie remade

OMG!  They've remade the movie that scared the pants off me as a child!  I stayed over at my older cousin's house when I was 8 or so.  Poltergeist had just come out on VHS, so she rented it.  I remember watching parts of it from behind the sofa, cushion, and my hands.  It gave me the willies for years as my childhood bedroom had a built-in closet opposite my bed, and I also had an old clown doll (that my mother had given to her years and years ago) that used to sit on the bed.  After I came home - totally freaked out by the way - I couldn't sleep in my room until I shoved an old bit of dowling through the handles of the built-in closet.... with the clown doll inside!

This will just terrify/traumatise a new generation of children.  But I have to admit, I'll most likely watch it as I love a good spooky movie - and the special effects look amazing.  Am I nuts or what?

Until next time,

 

All strapped up with no place to go!

I am quite sore this morning after yesterday's visit to the local physio department at the hospital.  As usual I was poked and prodded - with a million and one questions regarding how painful this or that pain was on a scale from 1 to 10 - and after a truly painful massage to loosen the tension in my left calf muscle I was all strapped up on both feet and free to go.  Walking to the car was awkward with the strapping on, but I can take it off in another day or two ;-D

Today I've taken the new look out for a test drive.  Had to get a few essentials at Woolworth's, and I've also done the first set of exercises.  Strapping pinching on the inner left ankle, but I can always adjust that, or remove that piece of tape if it gets painful - or so said the physio.  Only the laundry to be put on the line left of my chores today, then I can put my feet up and see how things go.  Fingers crossed this works.

Oh, and I know the photo's aren't the best but I took them on my cruddy phone camera.  Can't wait to get a new phone - but that's another story ;-D

Until next time, keep safe and

 

Early morning swim

Got an early start this morning and by 7am I was 25km from home and doing my hydrotherapy exercises.  After an hour of that I was truly knackered - that's not including the drive back home which was another 25km!  

Luckily it's a great pool.  Lovely ramp entry or wide platform step on the other side, quite warm and always a pleasure to go into when winter hits ;-D 

Unfortunately, I also have a physiotherapy session this afternoon at the hospital.  Tomorrow could be a bed day as I think I'll be too sore and tired to do anything else but rest and take it easy.  But fear not, I have a pile of books that I want to get through so I'll be set.

Take it easy, and until next time...

 

Tropical Cyclone Marcia

I don't know if any of you lovely people out there have been following this, but Queensland has just been hit by a rather quick forming cyclone.  TC Marcia may have been small, but she certainly packed a punch (Cat 5), and she's not done yet.  Although downgraded to a Cat 1 cyclone, Marcia has been steadily heading down the coast, which means that by lunchtime today it should be over/near my town, and although I love wet and stormy weather, I'm not to enthused about the strong winds that could still be gusting at over 95km/h - even if she's downgraded again into a Low.

 Out and about after heading to the shops to pay a bill - in case I get flooded in!

Strangely while everyone back home on the coast is getting drenched, I had no real rain to report yesterday.  Then at about 10pm last night, the heavens opened and it has been raining ever since.  It's down to a drizzle at the moment, but there has been enough rain over the last 12 hours to start flooding some roads.  I hope that any of the rivers upstream don't flood - otherwise I'll be flooded in!

Wish I was back on the coast for this.  I just love watching the waves crash against the shore.  Although if we get more rain running off into the massive storm drain that backs up to my unit complex, then I'll definitely be seeing some wave action!

Thinking warm thoughts ;-D, and until next time,

 

Unexpected Hiatus

Hi everyone!  Sorry about the unexpected break I've taken.  I didn't realise it had been more than a month since I last posted anything, however I really did need a break from being a slave to the internet.

Over the last few weeks I've done almost zero reading.  A nice break to recharge my batteries, and the desire for reading.  It couldn't have come at a better time as while my family were over for a visit, we went shopping and I spied a copy of Obsession in Death by J.D. Robb (book 40!) and my mum just had to get it.  Unfortunately for her, she couldn't dive straight into it - but I could!  I convinced her to let me have it for the week (we'd already organised another visit), so I had a week to soak in as much of Obsession in Death as I could.  I found that I enjoyed it more than the previous couple of books in this neverending series.  Didn't have a clue as to who Eve's stalker was.  So rare to be truly surprised these days ;-D

I've also been on a quilting/sewing kick at the moment.  I spent a few hours sewing myself a Sunnies case - that may never be used for actual sunnies! - and really enjoyed it.  Learned a lot doing this, and next time I'll be more adventurous with the quilting.  So with project no #1 under my belt, I'm looking forward to more sewing this year - especially now that the weather is starting to cool off.  It's the perfect time to plan my winter projects.  I'm hoping to start a QAYG (quilt as you go) bedspread, but only if I find the perfect pattern ;-D

Anyway, have to love you and leave you as I'm going to order some upcoming book realeases.  My goal this year is to cull out some of the series that have fallen by the wayside, but there are some that I simply can't miss.  

Until next time,

 

Breakfast at Tiffany's | Book Review

Breakfast at Tiffany's
Truman Capote

This edition published in 2008, originally published 1958

Penguin, mass market pbk, p. 9-100
ISBN: 9780141037264

Holly Golightly - brashly beautiful with a slim black dress, a mysterious past and dark glasses over her varicoloured eyes - entrances all the men she meets, including the young writer living above her, though her recklessness may yet catch up with her.

I picked this small book up at a local charity shop for a dollar.  The idea was if it was boring, or I just didn't like it, then it was only a dollar and I could donate it somewhere.  It sat on my TBR shelves for a few months, until January 1st.  For some reason I picked it up on a whim.  Perhaps it was because the book seemed so small, but I just sat on my couch, took a deep breath, and started reading.

“Good luck and believe me, dearest Doc - it's better to look at the sky than live there.  Such an empty place; so vague. Just a country where the thunder goes and things disappear.”

Capote didn't disappoint me.  I found this book to be oh so beautifully written.  The world was real, the characters were believable, and for all her faults I still found Holly to be sweet in some way.  In a nutshell, Holly is a good-time girl with a penchant for men over a certain age.  These men seem to visit her apartment in droves - sometimes staying overnight - at a time when that was still a big no no.  The social stigmas that would have been placed on any other woman of that era, that of being a loose woman, seems to have no impact on one Holly Golightly.  She shurggs off the slights, and with an almost calculated calm, keeps looking for the next guy, the next thrill, or hobby, or whatever, to tickle her fancy.  Once she's found it, Holly leaves without any concern over who she's left behind.

There are, obviously, a few more characters in this book, but from the narrators POV, it's all about Holly.  Some of the secondary characters show Holly in a more positive light, while others show her less endearing qualities - such as the party scene where her 'friend' goes to the bathroom and then can't understand why all the previously friendly men are now avoiding her like the plague ;-D

I was surprised to find that this wild and wilful woman, who although selfish, seems to be beloved by most everyone she meets, was in reality an 19 year old girl when the book starts.  I think this is because Capote was able to capture the essence of her, and her age became immaterial.  He packed so much of Holly's hopes and dreams into this one small story that I was amazed to find myself being swept away in the story, and a bit sad to find that it was over all so soon, as this book only takes an hour or so to get through.

While I could go on about the symbolism, indepth character reviews, etc., I will not bore, or spoil, you for such a great book.  Just trust me when I say that if you think you know it all - because you've watched Audrey Hepburn's movie - then think again because the story was changed in key plot points for filming.

After I put the book down I immediately had to review it on Good Reads and even now, a two weeks later, I stand by my initial thoughts.  The simplicity of the writing, which managed to convey all his thoughts and feelings, still has me wanting to read more.  To find out exactly what happened to Holly.  This is the mark of a truly great book. 

Do yourself a favour, and read Breakfast at Tiffany's.

Oh, and because the generic Penguin cover doesn't do this amazing book justice, I'm eyeing off a new edition. 

What do you think?

Until next time,

 

T5W - Series I want to start in 2015

Good morning, my lovelies!  Today is another T5W, and I've been looking forward to this 'topic' since I found out what the January topics were.  I'm not sure about you, but I have a lot of series.  Some only have 4 or 5 books (Parasol Protectorate, or Lily Bard), but most range from 10 - a whopping 40! (Obsession in Death is the 40th book - and there is no signs of it stopping yet!).  So in reality, the last thing I need is more series on my shelves.  But when you find a series that really grabs your attention, you know you're guaranteed at least a few more books that will be great - I hope?  

Without further delay, here are my Top 5 Series that I will be starting this year from there.  Wish me luck...

PS. I'm hoping that Atemis Awakening is the start of a series - and not a duology or trilogy.

So, we've come to the end of my 'Series that I want to start in 2015' post.  I hope you found a book or two that you'd like to try.  Oh, and if you've read some of these feel free to let me know what you thought of them in the comment section down below ;-D

If you'd like to participate in Top 5 Wednesday, it's open to anyone.  Check out the Good Reads Group {here} and as you know T5W was created by the lovely Lainey over at GINGERREADSLAINEY

Well, that's it for another week.  Until next time,

 

First book haul of the year

So over the last three days I was bad and bought my first books for 2015.  On Saturday I went into my local bookshop and couldn't resist taking home with me The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne.  Such a beautiful cover, and it feels lovely and suede-like as well which is a bonus.

Then on Sunday I went online (originally just to check my email) and found my way to the Book Depository - for the first time this year! - and bought some classics (Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde by R.L Stevenson and Orlando by Virginia Woolf) as well as the first book in the Kingkiller Chronicles, The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss.  This book has been well represented on YouTube and I've held off till now as I'm still not sure that I'll like it.  But you've got to take a chance on a new book every now and then.  Unfortunately now I have to play the waiting game.  I won't get the books till the end of the week at the earliest.

Yesterday, Monday, I went to town and happened to find the hardcover of Gathering Darkness by Morgan Rhodes plus a discounted copy of The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov (down to $5!).  The plain Penguin cover copy of Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov was on sale as well, and I couldn't resist the beauty that is A Thousand Pieces of You by Claudia Gray.  That cover is so gorgeous.  I've resisted buying this for the last couple weeks, but finally caved.

Finally when I was at the counter paying for my books there was a box beside the register that had some free audiobooks.  Ever the sucker for a good audiobook I sorted through them and found the last remaining copy of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland read by Miriam Margolyes.

In all I've had a great week in terms of new books.  Hopefully my Boxing Day Sale order from Book Outlet will turn before the end of the month - order includes Red Shirts by John Scalzi, Artemis Awakening by Jane Lindskold, Thirteen by Kelley Armstrong and Shadow Society by Marie Rutkoski - and I have two orders to pick up before the end of the month from local outlets as well.  So if I add those (Snugglepot & Cuddlepie by May Gibbs, Clash of Kings/Feast of Crow/Storm of Swords 1 & 2 by George R.R. Martin, plus The Great Zoo of China by Matthew Reilly) I've totally exceeded my monthly quota for books!  Oh, and I need to order some new releases for early Feb by then too!

So many books, not enough bookshelves ;-D

I hope you have luck finding some great books this month and until next time,

 

T5W - Most Anticipated Releases of 2015

Hello, and welcome to my first T5W post of 2015!  I can't believe it's already here.  The days go so quickly now ;-D

This week it seems appropriate that we are delving into our wishlists to come up with our top 5 most anticipated books being published in 2015.  I have so many pre-orders in my wishlist it's not funny, but I have gone through them and found the 5 that I am desperately want to get my hands on.  

So, in no particular order, here are my Top 5:

Note: I scoured the author's websites to find any more details about the cover art - or book title - for the last two books, but alas, nothing.  In the future though, I will swap out the generic place holders for the final artwork as it becomes available.

So, these are my most 5 anticipated books for 2015 - for now ;-D.  It could always change especially since the first 3 are on shelves by Feb/March.

Anyway, as you know 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.  If you have any questions or comments, then please feel free to leave them down below.

Best of luck with all your reading challenges/goals in 2015.

Until later,