April Book Haul

April was a trying month.  In the middle of the month I ended up having surgery on my wrist, and about two and a half weeks later, without much improvement, I found myself sitting in the hospital's emergency room last Monday (waited 2 hours and froze in the air conditioning!), only to get some antibiotics and a referral to get an ultrasound done later in the week.  Results for that aren't in yet, but the guy doing the scan said there was no infection - awesome! - but I do have some keloid scarring happening... bummer.  Unfortunately this is almost as bad as the original symptoms and I'm hoping that massage and future physio might do the trick.  However, I digress as you probably don't want to hear about all that stuff, instead on to the book haul...

So with that in mind, it's perfectly understandable that I would turn to alternate forms of therapy to take my mind off the pain - and inconvenience of not even being able to do up my own bra! - with some retail therapy - and so I bought more books.  Bad, I know, but I was just so sore (and yes, bored), that I needed a pick-me-up.  However, I didn't expect it to be this problematic ;-D

Thankfully they didn't all arrive at once or else my mother, who stayed with me for nearly two weeks, would have had a conniption over all the parcels that the courier was bringing to my door.  As of the beinning of May I have read 9 out of the 15 - woo-hoo! - and I'm putting some aside for future reading as I'm just not in the mood for them now, but I do want to read them at some stage (i.e., The Black Tulip).

First book I read was The Casquette Girls, and I really enjoyed this paranormal YA book.  Was moody, atmospheric and had an interesting twist.  Could really see it being made into a movie, or TVM, as the New Orleans backdrop was amazing.

Next I went on to The Obsession by Nora Roberts.  It was pretty good, but not amazing.  Could have done with a 5 page prologue and not the nearly 80 pages we got, but the rest was pretty good.  She does write a good mystery/romance that you can read over and over again.

Then I thought I'd better start on my April #ayearofmarple challenge with A Murder is Announced.  Took me till the end of the month to finish it, but I got there.  Yeah, still isn't my favourite story, but won't be as bad as this month's offering, They Do It With Mirrors (which I really don't like).

After that, I sprinkled the week with my newly delivered Stephanie Laurens books - all three of them!  Yes, I totally caved and bought the first books in the Cynters Next Generation series.  I don't know why I did this.  Why did the author have to continue on with a new generation that will guarantee at least another 20 books!  I'll be needing a bookcase to devote just to her interconnected series by the time she's finished with them.  I enjoyed The Tempting of Thomas Carrick more than A Match for Marcus Cynster, and I was not all that fussed with By Winter's Light as the main romance between Daniel and Claire was overshadowed by the meeting of Lucilla and Thomas.

The Liar was an impulse buy as I'd enjoyed The Obsession.  But once again, I was feeling let down by the author as it was reminicent of other novels in her bibliography.  It felt like I was reading scenarios from her other books that had just been transfered into this novel after changing characters names and other descriptive info, etc.  Needed to revisit some older favourites to get the bad taste out of my mouth, so to speak.  Indeed, I spent some quality time with The Search, The Witness, Black Hills, and a couple of bowls of ice-cream over the next few days ;-P

Then Garden of Lies arrived and I was a happy little camper.  I have found these paranormal Victorian romance/mysteries quite entertaining.  This one was okay, but I think I'll have to give it a re-read to see if it was just my mood, or it really was just an pretty good story.  

And finally, the last book I read in April was the much anticipated Firebound, the second last book in the Sea Haven series.  I was hoping for a great book, but I didn't get that. Don't get me wrong, Firebound was pretty good, and it furthered the storyline along, but there were just too many inconsistancies and far fetched scenarios for me to be able to buy into the fantasy of it.  Will post a review in the near future discussing my thoughts on this series.

And so we come to the end of this mini wrap-up.  I can't believe I bought this many books in April, and actually finished so many of them as well.  Still awaiting a few more books, but thankfully I ordered those in the beginning of May, so they don't count ;-D

Hope you all had a fabulous reading month, and until next time,

On the mend

It's been a little while since I posted anything, and now I can finally manage to do something other than sit on my bed and read books, the simple task of sitting at my desk to use the computer, and type on the keyboard, is very liberating.  I am so excited to get back online!

If you don't know, almost 2 weeks ago I had surgery on my wrist.  Thankfully it was only a short procedure, but I have had a lot of pain, and only got the stitches out a few days ago.  I'm still waiting to go to the physio, but until then I'm exercising my wrist as much as I can.  So, in the spirit of wrist 'exercise' I dug out my Alice in Wonderland colouring book.

So for most of Friday I coloured.  I sat on the couch, watching my new blu-rays (The Fifth Element, Jupiter Ascending, and Guardians of the Galaxy) while I shakily started to fill the black and white pages with colour.  On Saturday afternoon I was back in front of the TV again, adding some gold to the appropriate parts of the page - just a little bit shaky as you can see - but although my wrist felt like I'd been lifting 20lb weights all day, I was happy with the progress I was making, and how much more control I was able to have with the fine paintbrush.

Which lead me to feeling a bit cocky as I decided to tackle the title page with said gold paint, and watercolours to complete the illustration.  Don't ask me why I decided that that was a good idea, but by the end of my colouring session I was as worn out as a dishcloth.  My hand was cramped from holding it in the same position for hours, and I was getting one heck of a back ache.  Still, I am on the way to completing my first pages from this book, and I'm happy with how my wrist is improving.

Yesterday I tried to do a little more, and only added some colour to a few of the swirls holding the teacups (above pic), and added a little bit more gold to the clock page.  Today I'm going to spend reading - once I finish typing this post - and head off to the ANZAC Day ceremony in the local park.

On the book front, I'm still awaiting some parcels in the mail and will do a book haul when I get them all, as well as review the books that I have devoured while I was stuck in bed for nearly 2 weeks - though I have been adding my recent reading materials to my Instagram account if you can't wait for reviews.

So until next time,

The Book of Life left me hanging...

As most of you would know, especially if you have been following me on Instagram, I ❤️ the All Souls Trilogy by Deborah Harkness.  I adored A Discovery of Witches, Shadow of Night was amazing, but with The Book of Life... it has always been the problem child.  So when I finished rereading The Book of Life (BoL) last night, my mind just wouldn't stop trying to figure out what the deal is with that book.  Why is it that I don't love this book when I find the first two absolutely amazeballs?

Then this morning it hit me.  It's all those darned loose threads that are just dangling, unfulfilled and tantalizing in their promise.  Still not convinced?  Then let me elucidate . . .

Book Review || The Body in the Library

The Body in the Library
Miss Marple #2
Agatha Christie

Originally published in 1942 (Review edition reprinted in 2002)

HarperCollins, mass market, 272 p.
ISBN: 0-00-712083-4

It's seven in the morning.  The Bantrys have awoken to find the body of a young woman in their library.  She is wearing evening dress and heavy make-up, which is now smeared across her cheeks.

But who is she?  How did she get there?  And what's the connection with another dead girl, whose charred remains are later discovered in an abandoned quarry?  The alarmed Bantrys invite Jane Marple to solve the mystery, before tongues start to wag. . . 

Yes, I know I'm so late in reviewing my February pick for A Year of Marple, but honestly I just wasn't feeling it last month.  However, with the lovely stormy weather I'm enjoying for Easter, it is finally cosy mystery time.  So with that in mind, I picked The Body in the Library up last night and powered through, finishing it in one session... yeah me!

I will state right off the bat that I have always loved the TV adaptations of this particular book, however unlike Murder at the Vicarage, I also enjoyed the original story itself.  So it wasn't a great surprise when I had to scramble to find some paper so I could jot down some notes to myself.  Such is the life of a reader.

... and this is why I usually have an old envelope, or two, handy!

The 1950's feel of the book is very much present.  Clothing and class distinctions are very much of the era, which is no surprise given it was written over 70 years ago.  If you are not familiar with some of the rigid, and tightly held to, prejudices of the day, then you may not pick up on some of the underlying, and subtly hinted at, tensions (such as Colonel Bantrys reactions before and after the revelation of Basil Blake's past injury) but it shouldn't detract from the overall storyline if you are not.

In regards to Christie's style of writing itself, one of the things I enjoyed was the multiple POVs - which was surprising as I usually hate that! - and while there are quite a few differences between the TV adaptations and the novel, it wasn't enough that I couldn't cope with the shift in the storyline.  I was, however, quite surprised to see how little a part Basil Blake played in the novel, and yet this character's involvement with Ruby Keene is always at the forefront of any adaptations investigation into who killed the her.  Strange, but true.

Speaking of characters.  I adored seeing more of Sir Henry Clithering.  He is such a dear.  I love this character as he isn't as pompous or arrogant as the other males that deal with Miss Marple tend to be.  The retired former head of Scotland Yard could have been an arrogant cross between Inspector Slack and Conway Jefferson in personality, but instead we have a shrewd yet personable gentleman - just what you need when dealing with Miss Marple.  He understands her, which is a step up from the other neanderthals in the police force, and is demonstrated when he asks her for the "Village parallel, please".  Such a pity that he didn't end up in the 2004 adaptation with Geraldine McEwan.

The other main characters were well done, and played off each other nicely.  There was not one particular character that was horrible, or that I hated - although Inspector Slack comes close as I really do not like his attitude - and yet if you did not know anything about the story, there is nothing to give the culprit away either.  The scene with Basil Blake confessing to Miss Marple about his drunken prank seems to come out of the blue, plot wise, and there is also a few snippets from Raymond Starr that I have never seen in an adaptation.  Was this a very well crafted whodunit, or a story that is missing elements?  I'm still not sure which, but I had a good time anyway.

This would be a great book to start with if you like classic whodunits, or are curious about the Miss Marple universe.  There is more action and odd tangled threads that should appeal to mystery readers. 

I hope enjoyed my review of The Body in the Library.  It was a fun read, and I'd love to know what you though of the book, or any of the adaptations.

The next book in my A Year of Marple is The Moving Finger, which I hope to get up during the week.

Until next time, my lovelies.

 

New in March

I've been a tad tardy with my book hauling this month - seasons 1-7 of Castle has been taking up way too of my free time lately.  However since I'm expecting the last of my book order to arrive before the end of next week, I thought it would be a good time to revisit what's new in my library.

Okay, as you know I pre-ordered copies of Marked in Flesh and Fire Touched.  Marked in Flesh, by Anne Bishop, arrived and looked fabulous once it was beside the first three books in the series (read it before lunch the following day! Review up soon-ish)  However, Fire Touched, by Patricia Briggs, never arrived {see HERE for more}.  Still miffed over that one so I'll move on.

Not long after that bookish drama I picked up two Miss Marple's at my local newsagents.  Talk about a lucky break as I needed them to add to my A Year of Marple book collection.  Still have a few more titles to pick up, but I think I'll have to resort to Book Depository for them.

And finally, I recently ordered the mass market edition of Magic Shifts by Ilona Andrews - I'll now be up to date when the new book in the series is released later this year! - and Perdido Street Station by China Mieville.  This is definitely my 'wildcard' book for the month as I have never read any thing by him, but after watching more than a few BookTube reviews that recommended this book in particular, I thought I'd give it a go.

So, this is what's new to my shelves in March.  I hope you found something new that you might like to check out.  What did you add to your shelves this month?  Let me know below as I'd love to find some new authors ;-D

Until next time,

 

Where's my pre-order?

So, yesterday I posted a little first impression review of Fire Touched that I read on the computer as I waited for the trade paperback to be published.  Well, what a difference 24 hours makes.  When I woke up this morning I had a reply from Book Depository.  It turns out that this trade edition of Fire Touched by Patricia Briggs will not be published until - wait for it - 31 January, 2017!  

Yes, that's right.  A whole ten and a half months from now.

I can't begin to describe how annoying this is, but I have been offered a full refund which is something at least.  So, since I don't want to fork out AUS$30 plus for the hardcover, I may as well wait and get the mass market paperback instead.

The funny thing is that when I was browsing Book Depository earlier this morning, Book Depository still hasn't changed the publication date for Fire Touched!  Grrr!  Has this happened to you?  Let me know in the comments as I'd love to hear that I'm not the only one left high and dry after pre-ordering.

Anyway, I hope you're having a better bookish day than I am.

Until next time,

 

First impression of Fire Touched

While I'm still waiting for my pre-ordered copy of Fire Touched to make it's way to me - which according to Book Depository hasn't even been printed yet! - so in the meantime, I picked up an eBook copy as I just had to know what Mercy was doing now.  So while I won't be doing an full review until I get that bloody book, I thought I'd do a first impression on the eBook.

As per normal there is another serious rumble within the supernatural community, and once again something magical is trying to upset the apple cart and Mercy happens to be dragged into yet another confrontation.  

On the home front, Christy is still hanging around, and things go down in the pack regarding Mercy that were surprising, but were long overdue when you think about it.  Also, the addition of Joel into the pack is slightly touched on, mainly by a certain sooking wolf or two, but instead of Joel being the focus of the book, as suggested by the cover art, that was only a very small part of the plot, and it instead revolves around a boy who is on the run from just about all the Fae.

A huge plus was the surprise return of a certain grumpy Fae smith, as well as one or two other past characters, and once again there are some new and delightfully hateful characters that Mercy has to deal with from the Fae Reservation.  There is just an endless supply of interesting characters you could have when dealing with Fae, and so far Briggs has made them all interesting and slightly twisted or devious, depending on what their roles are ;-D

There is a major shakeup in the werewolf hierarchy as Bran does something I really didn't expect him to ever do.  And of course there is way more that happens that I'm not telling you about as I don't want to spoil anything for you as I found this to be a fast paced and fun read.  

So in all, while I enjoyed this eBook quite a bit, I'll be much happier when I can read the darn book as eBook format does not really work for me (sore eyes due to staring at a bright screen for hours being the least of it).

For now I'm giving Fire Touched 4 out of 5 paws ;-D

I hope you enjoyed this first impression of Fire Touched.  If you have read the book, let me know in the comments what you thought of it, or what you would like to see happen in the future.

Until next time,

 

Book Review || Warrior's Woman

Warrior's Woman
LySanTer Trilogy #1
Johanna Lindsey

Published: orig 1990 (cover reissue 2010)

Avon, mass market pbk, 422p.
ISBN: 9780380753017

A PASSION THAT COULD CONQUER GALAXIES

In the year 2139, fearless Tedra DeArr sets out to rescue her beleaguered planet Kystran from the savage rule of the evil Crad Ce Moerr.  Experienced in combat but not in love, the beautiful, untouched Amazon flies with Martha, her wise-cracking, free-thinking computer, to a world where warriors reign supreme - and into the arms of the one man she can never hope to vanquish: the bronzed barbarian Challen Ly-San-Ter.  A magnificent creature of raw yet disciplined desires, the muscle-bound primitive succeeds where no puny Kystran male had before - igniting a raging fire within Tedra that must be extinguished before she can even think of saving her enslaved world.

from original back cover, 1990

As strange as it sounds, this was the book that kicked off my love for sci-fantasy as a teenager. I remember borrowing this from my friend in Yr 10 French (thank you, Becca!), and devouring a good portion of the book in that one double lesson.  I loved it, and I didn't want to give it back, but luckily I saw the same book at the local store a few days later and begged my mum to get it for me - and she did.

While it may just be a cheesy romance book to most people, the introduction of the Martha, the AI computer who seems to run Tedra's life, and Corth, a humanoid robot, characters that belong to Tedra DeArr, were the first artificial characters that I'd come across.  Up until then I'd been reading the usual teenage stuff or English required reading, The Outsiders, Picnic at Hanging Rock, etc., but hadn't made the jump into more adult books in my personal reading life.

Included in the wonderful world building are the amazing creatures Lindsey created.  The taraan, sa'abo, fembairs, and the hataar.  These were the first fantastical creatures I'd come across in fiction outside of mythology, and while not a complicated plot to follow, the story just swept me up and let me forget about the world for a few hours.

With Warrior's Woman I got a glimpse into an amazing word where a woman could be strong and tough, and fly through space in search of adventure. It didn't hurt that her soon to be love interest, Challen, was amazing in my imagination, but still, it was far more than just a romance book to me.

Fast forward way too many years. . . 

So now picking this book up and re-reading it with the perspective of an adult, I find that there is still something charmingly naive about Tedra and Warrior's Woman.   Yes, it's sexist in places, and quite cheesy and formulaic to boot, but I still rather like it.  Tedra is still a strong female protagonist, and Martha - although silicon based - is just as feisty.  Corth takes a back seat in the scheme of things, and even bossy-boots Challen will defer to Tedra in some matters.  Quite enlightened for a barbarian.

I loved the contrast between the futuristic Kystran and the feudal/medieval (with a twist) Sha'ka'an cultures.  Shades of A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court there with the culture clash, and this is well demonstrated in the scene where Tedra had no idea what an uncle is despite knowing the word, or when she asks the crystal necklace to change colour to annoy Challen ;-D

It's now many years later, and I still have that original book - now battered and tattered - that sits on my shelf beside the replacement copy I bought.  Warrior's Woman is great book, quick and fast paced, that continues to hold many memories for me ;-D

Oh, and if you're interested, it is the first book in a trilogy.   I won't tell you who the next two books belong to - because that would be a HUGE spoiler ;-D

Until next time,

 

Book Review || Saying Goodbye to Discworld

 

The Shepherd's Crown
Tiffany Aching #5 (Discworld #41)
Sir Terry Pratchett

Published: September, 2015

Random House, hardcover, 352p. (b&w ill.)
ISBN: 9780857534811

“We are all floating in the winds of time.  But your candle, Mistress Weatherwax, 

will flicker for some time before it goes out - a little reward for a life well lived.”

A Shivering Of Worlds.  Deep in the Chalk, something is stirring.  The owls and the foxes can sense it, and Tiffany Aching feels it in her boots.  An old enemy is gathering strength.  This is a time of endings and beginnings, old friends and new, a blurring of edges and a shifting of power.  Now Tiffany stands between the light and the dark, the good and the bad.  As the fairy horde prepares for invasion, Tiffany must summon all the witches to stand with her.  To protect the land.  Her land.  There will be a reckoning...

Ever since I heard of the death of Sir Terry Pratchett last year, I have been torn between wanting to read the final book in the Tiffany Aching series, and not wanting to read the final ever book of the Discworld.  But all good things must come to an end, and yesterday I picked up The Shepherd's Crown to say goodbye.

I enjoyed being back in the world of the Chalk, following Tiffany around as she struggles with the responsibilities left to her after the death of Granny Weatherwax.  The death of this character was totally out of the blue, but was strangely fitting under the circumstances - and it sets in motion the rest of the story.

Before we got to that though, there were two introductions, if you will.  First we got the backstory of the Shepherd's Crown, and then an interlude with a family that was quite out of the blue.

I wasn't quite sure where we were going when the author introduced us to Lord Swivel and his family.  Swivel was such a despot.  The way he treated his 3rd son as an unwanted, and unnecessary, burden... I just wanted to reach into the pages and punch him in the nose!  However, it did set the stage for a small plot that pays off at the end of the book - the chickens (keep that in mind) and the fateful fox hunt.  This is when the neglected son finds his courage to stand up to his father, leaving home and taking his pet with him - much to his father's fury.  This introduction of Geoffrey Swivel was an unexpected twist - and that goat, Mephistopheles!  What a character.  He's like a Feegle on four legs! Geoffrey is not the usual sort of character that one finds in the Chalk, but his unique type of magic plays an integral part in the upcoming fight against a well known foe - the Elves.

After the death of you know who (trying not to spoil you!), Tiffany is run off her broom.  Trying to be everywhere, and do everything herself.  She wants to do everything right, but has to learn when to delegate.  Not something she embraces in a hurry.  Roland is there once or twice, usually putting his foot in it, and we see more of Tiffany's family.  The Nac Mac Feegles are ever present as they try to help their 'big wee hag'.  Still love the Feegles.  They are so adorable, rough, loyal, and funny.   Oh, and there are plenty of quick cameo's by well known figures from the Discworld as news gets out about 'that death', and Tiffany.

Yes, life is changing on the Chalk.

I found reading The Shepherd's Crown to be a strangely sad experience.  It was funny in places, and yet there was the sense that the book was not quite finished.  There was so much more that could have been done with the story... all these little untied threads that now hang uselessly from the Discworld tapestry. 

Until next time,