Traveling by the Book (Series)

Eirlandia, the most recent

In the Land of the Everliving by Stephen Lawhead came out last Tuesday.  Because the local Barnes and Noble didn't get it in stock, I ordered it and it came in yesterday.  My new-to-me car put me on side the road yesterday, so I didn't go to work.  When it came in, I hurried and finished Trickster's Queen, and read all but something like 70 pages last night.  I finished it a few hours ago.

Lawhead is probably the single biggest butterly effect in my life.  Or at least the one I can track the easiest.  Mom brought home In the Hall of the Dragon King back in August of 2005.  I loved it.  I got all of his other books, most of which are Celtic based.

I would've never gotten into Celtic mythology.  I would've never gotten into Robin Hood or enjoyed a King Arthur epic.  I would've never tried other Celtic-based fantasy.  Or I might have, in another way, but this is the way of it.

I want to visit all of the former Celtic nations.  I've made it to Scotland.  Half the reason I chose Inverness was because of the Groame House Museum in Rosemarkie, which is nearby.  It's a collection of carved Pictish stones.  It's a two room, small place, but it's Special.  They have a harp replica, with sheet music and how to play it.  The other reason was Leakey's Book Shop.

At the back of the King Raven books, there's mention of music based from the story.  They have a soundtrack.  Unfortunately, I was a broke kid who couldn't order stuff online myself and

I looked up Jeff Johnson and Brian Dunning on Pandora, then.  I loved everything Pandora played for me of theirs.  I have all of their Lawhead based work now, plus some other stuff they've done.

Because I looked them up on Pandora though, I was also introduced to the Olllam, Michael McGoldrick, David Arkenstone, etc.  My music library is amazing because of this.

Anyway, but to Eirlandia specifically, In the Region of the Summer Stars was his first book in four years.  The series before that, Bright Empires, wasn't Celtic-based.  Every time I read one of his books, I'm reminded why he's my favorite author.

In the Region of the Summer Stars basically ends with everything getting blown to east hell, which is different from west hell, apparently.  But it still ends right. 

Lawhead is not for everyone, and I pity those he doesn't fit, but he's poetic and his books end, if not always happily, well.  They end the way they have to, you know?

I don't think I'd read anything that took place in Iron Age Ireland before this point, or if I have, it's been a while.  Or it was a romance book.  O.o

You never know what a book will be until you read it yourself, but reading a Celtic fantasy from Lawhead is still familiar.  It's still poetic prose.  It's still likable characters you want to see succeed.  It's not a world I've been to, but I trust that particular world-maker.

And I really really really want to go to Ireland next.  Unlike the next two, this is somewhere I can actually go, even if it's not the Iron Age.


Tortall, the most books

A couple of months ago, I was in Barnes and Noble where I saw a display for a new Tamora Pierce book.  It was about Numair Salmalin.  I'd never read the Wildmage books, but I knew who Numair Salmalin was from his cameos in the following series.

"Well, I guess I'm going back to Tortall then!" is just about an exact thought I had.

I'd never read Mastiff, and it was time.  I started with Terrier and after I finished Mastiff, I wanted to read or re-read all of the Tortall books.  I had to find copies of the Song of the Lioness (Alanna) books, which wasn't difficult.  I had bought the Immortals (Daine) series some years ago and they'd been sitting on my shelf since.  I'd never read them, and they took me a little while, but I loved them.  Protector of the Small (Keladry) was my first Tortall series.  Reading it in order with the rest of the series made me squee throughout, because then I understood the importance of some of the characters.  I knew King Jonathan when he was Prince Jonathan, and Alanna the Lioness when she was Page Alan masquerading as a boy, and Daine the Wildmage before she knew she was a demigoddess in her own right, how Tkaa and Bonedancer came to live in the palace.  It was all part of a larger picture.  And then I don't remember if I read the Trickster books (Alianne) before or after Lioness the first times around.  This time, I was able to appreciate all of Aly's legendary family, both blood and adoptive.

The Tortall books are the sort of thing a young girl should read when finding her place in the world.  When she's told she can't do something because she's a girl.  When she's growing up and seeing all of the ugliness in the world and wants to fix it.  When she worries she might compromise who she is if she falls in love.  When she's afraid.

Or for a woman in her mid-to-late twenties who's forgotten the Important Things.  O.o

Tortall is a place for a person to shine, if they have the guts to do it.

I haven't read Tempests and Slaughter (Numair) yet.  The second book is supposed to be out soon, and I'm waiting for it to come out so I can read them back to back.  Har har.



Sitia and Ixia, what started me down this path

The latest 3 books of the Study series had been sitting on my shelf.  I'd forgotten how much I loved the characters.  I am also very glad that I waited until they were all out because waiting a year in between those books would've done nothing but piss me off.

I made a mistake in not reading the Glass books in between the first Study series and the second series.  I should've, because it takes place after, and there was some I'd forgotten and could've used the recap.  I could never get rid of them, but I never saw myself re-reading them either.  Now I think I could.  I will, eventually.  I've re-read way more than I've read this year, already, and I don't like that. I have something like 800-odd books I need to read.  Although, my excuse is, I needed to re-read what I had read, years ago, to fully enjoy the new ones to read.  O.o


And the Rest...

Last year, I re-read Spindle Cove by Tessa Dare.  Spindle Cove is a place for young ladies to be themselves.  How I wished for a place like that then.  I still do.  I'd probably never leave.  This year, I re-visited some of my favorite fictional places, and it was a nice vacation.  We need places like this.

I also re-read Dragon Kin.  I needed crazy heroines and the men who can love them anyway.  I needed a good laugh.  I needed to be reminded that it's okay if I don't do what everyone thinks I should, and do what makes me shine.

I'm trying not to read so much romance books.  It's not as depressing to be forever alone when you're not constantly trying to shove that kind of stuff down your own throat.  I say, as I have bookmarks in like 3 of them, and since I have no idea what I'm going to do next, will probably go for those next.  O.o

October in Review

Books Read: 10

Books on the Currently Reading Shelf on Goodreads: 13 (but I have more that I have bookmarks in that I didn't mark on Goodreads.

Approximate Word Count: ~11,363
 
Woo-hoo, improvements.  I think I did okay.  I read a little and wrote a little.


Book List:

• Welcome to the Jungle by Jim Butcher, graphic novel, 5 stars
• DRESDEN

• Checkmate by R. L. Mathewson, contemporary erotic romance, 3 stars
• I'm surprised I even finished this book.  That guy made me so mad...  But he pulled through in the end.

• Burning Alive by Shannon K. Butcher, paranormal romance, 3 stars
• This series has been advertised in the back of the Dresden Files, and it was at the Book Bag.  I wasn't wowed by it, but it was good enough to make me want to read the rest of the series, and since I already got them, you know...

Naked Nobility by Sally MacKenzie, historical romance

• The Naked Duke, 3 stars

• The Naked Baron, 4 stars

• The Naked Marquis, 3 stars

• The Naked Earl, 3 stars

• Not great literature, but, I mean, I obviously read a bunch of them.  They're funny and ridiculous.  Good for the quick and fun.

• The Curly Girl Handbook, by Lorraine Massey, nonfiction, 4 stars
• A celebration of curly hair, some curly confessions, really good for the curly girls out there!

• Daring Miss Danvers by Vivienne Loret, historical romance, 3 stars
• A series that was cheap for Kindle and I bought the whole series, wasn't terribly impressed, but it was still pretty decent, gonna read the rest of them 'cause I got them anyway.

• The Fatal Tree by Stephen R. Lawhead, contemporary fantasy/sci-fi, 4 stars
• Favorite author release.  It wasn't as strong as the earlier books in the series, but it was a conclusion that didn't end wrong.  It ended the way it had to, like any other SRL book.  He doesn't waste time wrapping it all up.

Review, Sort of, On The Ragamuffin Movie

Father’s Day weekend, I bought Ragamuffin, a film based on the life of, you guessed it, Rich Mullins.

It’s been sitting on my desk ever since. 

I’ve had writer’s block, been doing some productive reading, and keeping my head afloat school-wise.  I work six days this week.

So, my life kinda sucks right now.

I tried to write today, but I don’t know what story to work on, or what to write for those stories.  I put on the Rich Mullins, just to soothe myself a little, and eventually, just gave up and lay down.  If I can’t be productive, I may as well be comfortable, and bury my face in a warm blanket and call it a day.

I don’t consider myself a Christian much anymore.  I believe in God, and by extension Jesus—you can’t grow up in a Judeo-Christian worldview home and completely abandon everything you’ve been taught.  Or, 

I can’t anyway.  I’m INFP (that’s my excuse, and I’m sticking to it! O.o)

I got The Itch.  The last time I got The Itch, I read Carrie.  Loved it, by the way.  Well, I don’t know if I loved it, but I will certainly never forget it and may re-read it someday.  I appreciate it, I guess you could say.  But I digress.

It’s been Itching.  Like sometimes a book will say, “Jadi, Jadi, read me, read me,” for a few days or so until I’m Ready For It, and this movie has just been kind of whispering, “Soon.  Soon.”

Today, I decided, “Today’s the day.”

I’m well aware of how crazy this sounds.

So I popped it in my computer (I got rid of my TV and DVD player), and sat down to watch it.

It wasn’t really what I expected.  They left out snippets of “The Jesus Record.”  Just a little snippet of him at the piano playing one of those songs, and not “Be With You”—which is a great song, but still—would have been cool.  And something about Canticles of the Plains and there was a lot of stuff I wanted to see but they didn’t put in the film.

Beside the point. 

I watched it because while I was listening to the music, I was reminded of how soothing Rich Mullins’s voice is.  How soothing the music is.  Some people don’t like it, well, a lot of people don’t like it, but I always did.  I don’t know why.

Lacey told me one time it was because of his dramatic death, and I’m a writer, so I like dramatic stuff.  Her words, not mine.

Um, I was six when I got into Rich  Mullins, and I don’t know if I had a flair for the dramatic yet.  I remember liking the idea of someone giving their life to God, and let’s face it, the fact the guy was dead did have some sort of impact on my six-year-old self.  Pity of a child perhaps for a dead person?  Maybe.   I do remember feeling sorry for someone that gave their life to God, and then dying the way he did.

The other thing I remember is that Ray Boltz was Mom’s favorite.  Carmen was my sister’s favorite.  Rich Mullins needed to be someone’s favorite.  Might as well have been mine.

As I got a little older, I found some of his other albums. My mother and sister still prefer Songs, but I think my favorite album is probably The World as Best as I Remember It, Volume 2.    My favorite song is “Elijah,” which is on the first album, Songs, and on any greatest hits album; and a close second being, “Growing Young,” which is on The World as Best as I Remember It, Volume 2. 

It’s an interesting film.  Not bad for something that was probably low budget.  Makes me want to revisit The Ragamuffin Gospel and read all those Brennan Manning books I have in my Scribd library.  Nobody ever got through to me like Brennan Manning, or could make me cry/tear up.  I doubt I would even bother contemplating the notion of Jesus if not for Manning.  I loved the bits with him in it, and I was heartbroken when I heard he’d died.  But moving on...

I didn’t want to watch it at first.  I was a Rich Mullins fan and why were they just now waiting to make this movie and what if it isn’t any good, what if it ruins my image of him...?

Anyway, I told myself again and again I wouldn’t bother with it.  But then I started looking in WalMart and saw it, and bought it on impulse.  It was there, and why not?

I want someone I know to watch it, so I can talk about it with them.

Book Review: Lord of Scoundrels, by Loretta Chase

Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase

4 stars
Goodreads synopsis:

DETERMINED LADY

Tough-minded Jessica Trent's sole intention is to free her nitwit brother from the destructive influence of Sebastian Ballister, the notorious Marquess of Dain. She never expects to desire the arrogant, amoral cad. And when Dain's reciprocal passion places them in a scandalously compromising, and public, position, Jessica is left with no choice but to seek satisfaction ...

LORD OF SCOUNDRELS

Damn the minx for tempting him, kissing him ... and then forcing him to salvage her reputation! Lord Dain can't wait to put the infuriating bluestocking in her place --- and in some amorous position, And if that means marriage, so be it! --- though Sebastian is less than certain he can continue to remain aloof ... and steel his heart to the sensuous, headstrong lady's considerable charms.


Yes, it's an old book.  Yes, it's HISTORICAL ROMANCE CANON.

I read a Chase book last year.  Turns out, it was part of the Scoundrels series.  This book is book three.  Anyway, we'll ignore the glaring error of me not reading books in order.

Dain is angsty, and very much still a little boy inside a grown man's body.  The psychology student in me screamed, "Therapy!"

The hopeless romantic whispered, "He needs a good dose of old-fashioned lovin'."

He wants to do better.  He also doesn't want to get hurt.  He's trying.  He's scared.  There's a lot going on there.  At first, I didn't know how I would respond to him, but in the end, I really liked him.  He's the character that had a lot of room to grow, and actually did grow.

I adored Jess Trent.  She is your typical bluestocking spinster who neither needs nor wants a man.  And she shoots Dain.  She.  Shoots.  Him.

SHE.  SHOOTS.  HIM.

Served the b-tard right for walking away after being caught with her.  He then marries her because he's the only man big and mean enough to handle her.  He also has a major crush on her.  Aww.

Anyway, it's a good book, and I can understand why it's canon.  Because, it's always on a best-of romance list.  Always.

I love when I read a book that's a BIG DEAL, and it is actually a BIG DEAL.

April in Review

Books Read: 14
Books on the Currently Reading Shelf on Goodreads: 15
Days I Wrote Productively: 7
Approximate Word Count: ~7,100

Obviously, I didn't write much.  However, given how much I read, I'm not beating myself up about it.  Finals are next week (my last final is May 7), and then I have the rest of May off, and then return to classes June 2nd.

Book List:

• Sleepless at Midnight by Jacquie D'Alessandro, historical romance, 5 stars
• Geez, I love this author's books.  Like, really.  Laugh out loud funny.  If you haven't tried her and you like romance, go forth and read!

• Much Ado About You by Eloisa James, historical romance, 3 stars
• Good story, but no blow-up.  You have no idea how important the blow-up is in a romance book until you read one that doesn't have one.

• What Price Love? by Stephanie Laurens, historical romance, 5 stars
• Oh, oh gosh.  Honorary Cynsters.  This is splendid.  Simply splendid.  That is all.

• Furies of Calderon by Jim Butcher, fantasy, 5 stars
• I love Jim Butcher's books.  This is awesome, and read pretty quickly for a 600+ page book.

• Ashes Ascendant by Kevin McLaughlin, contemporary fantasy, 4 stars
• I didn't like it as much as the first Blackwell Magic book, but it was still pretty good.  The cast is great.

• Cynders and Ashe by Elizabeth Boyle, historical romance short story, 3 stars
• Um, it's hard for romantic short stories to be good.  There's often little to no blow-up.  I need that blow-up.

• Whirlwind Affair by Jacquie D'Alessandro, historical romance, 4 stars
• Double blow-up:  when you're not sure the hero and heroine are going to wind up together AND the villain makes a grab for the heroine.  Woo-hoo!

• The Taste of Innocence by Stephanie Laurens, historical romance, 5 STARS
• Okay, Charlie Morwellan - annoying hero, but really, really, REALLY pulls through in the end.  Sarah Conningham - love her, just love her.  And the villain gets the Zuko award (not as big a jerk as he could've been).  Simply lovely.  Wonderful.  The Honorary Cynster to end all Honorary Cynsters.

• Temptation and Surrender by Stephanie Laurens, historical romance, 5 stars
• The last of the Cynster series.  I adored Lucifer and Phyllida, and I liked Jonas and Emily.  And Lucifer and Phyllida had a huge part.  So much yes.  I still have the twins' books to read, but this is the last book proper.  The books I have left are the Cynster females.

• Academ's Fury by Jim Butcher, fantasy, 5 stars
• Oh, geez, the plot thickens, and it's getting exciting, and I'm so glad I have the entire series!

• The Raven and the Rose by Kevin O. McLaughlin, contemporary fantasy short story, 4 stars
• I like Ryan Blackwell.  I really, really, like Ryan Blackwell.  Very good character.  I read By Darkness Revealed last year.  There are typos here and there, but overall pretty good.  Mistakenly, this takes place before Ashes Ascendant.  Oops.  Anyway, moving on...

• Accidentally in Love by Claudia Dain, historical romance short story, um
• Again, hard for authors to pull off a romantic short story.  But this was really disappointing.  There wasn't anything but the heroine's obsession with the hero, and the hero wondering why he suddenly felt something for the heroine.  It just wasn't it.  This goes under, "slice of life" or "what we hoped happened a lot in the past, but probably didn't," not "great romance."

• The Skeleton Project, Fright Pack #1 by Wayne Thomas Batson, humor/paranormal shorts anthology, 4 stars
• And now it's time for Silly Stories with Mr. Batson, the part of the show where Mr. Batson comes out, and tells a silly story.  Great way to spend a slow day at work. 

• Cursor's Fury by Jim Butcher, fantasy, 5 stars
• I love this series.  It's exciting and wonderful.  Just wonderful.  Go forth and read!

Burning the Books?

The other day, I was wandering the book section of one of the local secondhand places.  I found a tightly-bound, pretty (in the sense it was like new condition) paperback of Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury.  I'm classics-illiterate, but I picked it up.  It was such a lovely copy, and I didn't have it, and I probably couldn't find it free online (not pre-1929, therefore not public domain).

I never found a spot for it, and it just sat on my desk.  It's there now.

I picked it up today, and read it before class.  I was almost finished, and if class hadn't started when it did, I would have finished it.  No matter.  As soon as I got home, I read the last 2 pages, the Afterword, and the Coda.

Oh my gosh, it's about burning books?  Words cannot describe the distress I felt about such an abomination.  I love books.  I don't care if I don't agree what's in them.

Authors put their heart and their soul into their writing.  When you burn a book, it's like you're burning their soul.  How dare you!  And Montag enjoyed it in the beginning!

The book's been around awhile, and I won't begin to describe it, or the literary implications or anything like that.  Odds are, you know all that already, and I'm the one late to the game.

Here is what I'll say on the matter, as a young wannabe bibliophile who's read this classic for the first time:

1 - It has a better ending than 1984, which I hated.

2 - It is one of the few classics I've read on my own.  I haven't read a lot of classics, and most of those were because of school.  And besides Candide and some Shakespeare, I don't always like them.  S'why I'm no longer an English major.

3 - I actually liked it.  Not in a "oh my gosh, you have to read this right now if you haven't" kind of way, but in a quiet, "I'm glad I read it, it was worth the heartache" kind of way.  A quiet affection for it.  And that's one more classic I can say I've read, and rarer, a classic I can say I liked and didn't just respect.  I will probably never re-read Pride and Prejudice, but I might re-read Fahrenheit 451 one day.

4 - That book has some flowery language.  Gracious me, wow.  It was kind of annoying, but once you get used to it, it's really rather lovely.

And I still gotta find a place for it, somewhere.  It needs a home somewhere in the shelves...

The Goblin King by Shona Husk, A Review-ish Type Post

The Goblin King, by Shona Husk

Back Cover Synopsis:
Once upon a time...

A man was cursed to the Shadowlands, his heart replaced with a cold lump of gold. In legends he became known as The Goblin King.

For a favored few he will grant a wish. Yet, desperately clinging to his waning human soul, his one own desire remains unfulfilled: A Willing Queen.

But who would consent to move from the modern-day world into the realm of nightmares? No matter how intoxicating his touch, no matter how deep his valor, loving him is dangerous. And the one woman who might dare to try could also destroy him forever.


May I take a moment to talk about the cover?  The guy looks like Dean Winchester.  And he's supposed to have dread locks with gold and amber beads in his hair.  Anyway...

3 stars

Okay, okay, why am I reviewing a book I only gave three stars to?

I finished it a few days ago, and it hurt.  It was by no means easy, nor funny, and the whole guy is millenia older than the girl...

It hurt to read.  It was slow.  Flat characters, could've been better...

But, but, but, but, it was a functional story.

Guy met girl years ago.

Didn't try to keep her.

Guy meets girl again some years later.

Creepy nightmare stuff.

Eliza agrees to be queen to escape her abusive fiance and because she loves Roan, the Goblin King.

Curse still unbroken.

They kill the druid who placed them under the curse.

Curse still unbroken.

ALL IS LOST!

Eliza sets up a goodbye dinner for Roan, and his brother Dai.  She cries in Roan's arms, and breaks his heart.  The gold encasing the flesh breaks, and his heart beats again.  He loves her more than he loves his gold, and he hurts because she's hurting.

Roan is now human again, hm hm hm hm, human again!

And they live happily ever after.

Okay, now that I've gone and ruined the story, this is why I'm kind of giving it a review:

Roan's heart had to break.  It didn't matter how much he thought he loved her.  His heart had to break for her.  There's something about reaching the breaking point that will enact a change.  You know what I'm talking about.

So, I don't know if I'll get the rest of the series, but I liked this one.  Roan could've been a lot worse than he already was, but I don't think, not within the course of the book, he ever did anything that truly bothered me--and a lot of stuff heroes do in romance books bother me.  Some things you just don't do, guys.

Roan gets the Zuko Award.  Eliza grows a pair as well with dealing with her abusive fiance.  It was nice to see her come into her own.  She's a fitting queen.

So, even though it wasn't great literature, I don't think I wasted my time reading it.  It made me think and hurt and feel things I don't like feeling.  It's the sort of thing I'll remember.  It also had that dark fairy tale feel to it.  There's a lesson somewhere here...

For Shame

I try really really really hard not to book bash, or if I do complain, I don't want to name names.  I like reading the best comebacks and sometimes the set downs.

There was an article with authors putting down other authors.

Being a writer and being a reader, and most importantly being both, means that you're going to have opinions.  Your opinions may or may not agree with the majority.  You may not even have an opinion where a minority shares it.

I used to be really okay with complaining about Twilight, which I have read, and Jane Austen, who, up until two years ago, I hadn't read.

I try not to bash books I haven't read.  Or authors.  I've said a few things about Fifty Shades of Grey and Outlander on Facebook.  Mostly complaining because they're getting optioned for the big and little screens respectively, and yet, nobody wants to pick up the Cynsters.  The only things I know about Fifty Shades of Grey  are 1) that it's Twilight fanfic and 2) everybody says it's an awful, abusive relationship.  The only things I know about Outlander are 1) that it's not technically a romance, though any romance reader worth her sighs has read it ('cept me) and 2) the woman is married in her time, but marries someone else in her time warp.

I've never read either book.  I don't have much interest in doing so.  I don't like abusive relationships, and I don't like adultery, even though it technically isn't or whatever.  I don't know.  I never really cared for time travel, because I was always left wondering how it would end and I'm too chicken to go through it and find out. 

I've read some BDSM erotica and erotic romance.  I didn't care for it.  There was one historical erotic romance I liked, and that was probably because it was more about the romance than the sex.  I loved the heroine, and the hero was good for her.  It was a good story.

I read one at the end of last year that annoyed me.  It was contemporary erotic romance, the explanation of the dom/sub relationship was there, lots and lots of spanking.  Anyway.  I hated the hero.  I didn't like the heroine for putting up with him.  The worst part of all of that it seemed everybody else loved it on Goodreads.  I really had a tough time putting my thoughts into words.  Mostly, it was a lot of frustrated grumbles.  And it ended in the wrong place for me.

As a reader, I don't think I have to read a book just because everyone else has.  I certainly don't have to like it.

As a writer, I have to wonder.  I don't want to not read the best-sellers because, as a writer, shouldn't I see what's selling and what's not?

I don't know, really.  I think, if it's a genre I actually want to write, yes, by all means.  If it's not, it's not.

I've never read Nicholas Sparks--but then I don't want to write mainstream fiction, and personally it never really interested me. 

I'm an immature reader.  I like plots and happy endings.  I've liked a few of the literary novels I've read, but really, give me a plot.

I bought the first four books of Song and Ice of Fire at the end of 2011.  2012 and 2013 passed...still haven't read them.  I will, though.  Someday.  Maybe when all of the books are out. O.o

That's the beautiful thing about waiting to read a series.  If you wait long enough, you skip the angst over waiting for the next book.  And I never mainline series anyway.  I'm not angsty because I always have more books to read.

As far as specifically fantasy and Regency romance goes.  Yes, yes, yes, by all means, read it, Jadi.  If it's just some popular book up there in the bibliosphere, if you don't want to read it, don't.  But if you do want to read it, do.

Simple as that.  Don't shame the ones you don't like, and certainly not the authors.  Long after I'm dead, and I lived my dream of being an author, I don't want to be remembered for anything ugly I wrote about somebody else.

However, there is one thing I'll say about authors insulting each other:

Even classics were just normal books once, and not everyone has to like them.

"Never Alone," and other Powerful Statements

I finished "The Blackwood" by Wayne Thomas Batson at something like 12-1 o'clock in the morning yesterday.  January 4th, that is.  After the story, there's a little "surprise."  I won't spoil it, but I have to wonder if "The Blackwood" was the wrapping, and the surprise was the real gift.

Not that "The Blackwood" isn't great.  IT IS.  It is so freaking great.  Mr. Batson can spin a fun story like nobody's business.  Like Lloyd Alexander, except blatantly Christian, and a little lengthier.

That may not sound like a big deal to you, but it's a compliment from me, believe me.

Oh shoot, I AM going to have to spoil the surprise.  It had such an effect on me.

It's a special epilogue to The Door Within series. I'll not spoil it entirely, but, King Eliam says this:

"But in all that time, you were still in my hands.  You were never alone.  Even if you had fallen, what harm could have come to you?"

Aidan points out he could've died.

"And you did die, Aidan....valiantly.  But for my children, death has no sting, no lasting bite.  Before your breath ended there, your first breath began here."

There is an unbelievable amount of power in those statements.

It fits with the motto of the series:  "Never alone."

I never thought a mere two words could be so powerful.

I think it's something kind of sick how fantasy--quite possibly the bane of the serious critic's existence--is so powerful, especially children's fantasy.  I remember seeing once that people think it's only a great children's story if it conveys some great lesson.  But a great children's story can also be one that just causes the child to smile.

I agree with that, and not.  Lloyd Alexander and Wayne Batson are both chock full of lessons, intended or not.  But on the same token, I don't know if there's a greater lesson to Vesper Holly, and I love them anyway (but I never recall calling them great, just fun, so I don't know).

Lloyd Alexander has a lot of powerful statements in his books.

In The Foundling, Dallben is given The Book of Three.  He loved knowledge and sought wisdom.  He despaired at first when he saw all of the awful things in the book.  But then:

"The book lay nearby.  Its last pages still unread and, for a moment, Dallben thought to tear them to shreds and scatter them to the wind.  Then he said:

"'I have begun it, and I will finish it, whatever else it may foretell.'

"Fearfully and reluctantly, he began to read once more.  But now his heart lifted.  These pages not only told of death, but of birth as well; how the earth turns in its own time and in its own way gives back what it given it; how things lost may be found again; and how one day ends for another to begin.  He learned that the lives of men are short and filled with pain, yet each one a priceless treasure, whether it be that of a prince or a pig-keeper.  And, at the last, the book taught him that while nothing was certain, all was possible.

"'At the end of knowledge, wisdom begins,' Dallben murmured.  'And at the end of wisdom there is not grief, but hope.'"

That's powerful.  That's dragons can be beaten talk.  It's all sorts of wonderful.

And, of course, there's from the Prydain books proper.

"It is easy to judge evil unmixed. But, alas, in most of us good and bad are closely woven as the threads on a loom; greater wisdom than mine is needed for the judging.”
― Lloyd Alexander, The Black Cauldron
I loved that.  It's amazing.

“Life's a forge -

Yes, and hammer and anvil, too. You'll
be roasted, smelted, and pounded, and
you'll scarce know what's happening to
you. But stand proudly to it. Metal's
worthless till it is shaped and
tempered. More labor than luck. Face
the pounding, don't fear the proving;
and you'll stand well against any
hammer and anvil.”
― Lloyd Alexander, The High King
I read in another book, a romance, the hero says Jesus may have been a carpenter, but the Father was a blacksmith.

Fine picture, that.

Thought-provoking.  Powerful.  In children's literature.  When I come across things like that, it makes me wish I had read more as a child.  Maybe things would've been different, and it makes me wonder if I could've spared myself a lot of heartache.

Never alone.



*Quotes taken from Goodreads and my highlighted notes from my Kindle, no copyright infringement intended.

By Darkness Revealed by Kevin O. McLaughlin

Goodreads Synopsis: Ryan Blackwell thought to escape his magic by burying himself in the military college at Northshield, Vermont. Instead, he finds himself in the midst of a deeper and more dangerous sorcery than he has ever encountered before. Suddenly, only Ryan's wit, will, and the talent he once hoped to leave behind stand between a nightmarish creature and everything he cares for.


By Darkness Revealed by Kevin O. McLaughlin
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I bought this book several months ago--or downloaded it because it was free.  At any rate, I saw it, was interested, and had to get it.

When I finally sat down to read it, I was not disappointed.  It's not a long book, and it reads fast and the action stays moving.  It met and exceeded expectations.

I cheated and did my Goodreads copy-paste thing.

Now, this book is a load of OH MY GOODNESS, THIS IS FREAKING AWESOME.  I don't know.  There weren't many typos and it's kind of creepy, but it kept my attention.  I read it in two days.  One hundred twenty pages isn't a lot, so the length was an added bonus.

And, I'm a sucker for a good ending, and it ended splendidly.

Here's the Amazon link.  Read it.

To Win Her Heart by Karen Witemeyer

Book: To Win Her Heart
Author: Karen Witemeyer
Rating: 4/5 stars/kisses/roses

This book reminded me why I don't read a lot of Christian romance. Preachy clean, not very humorous, and NOT Regency England. (If I didn't know it did, I wouldn't think Christian Regency romance existed.)

However, Hero was a blacksmith. The book was free for Kindle. Eh, I'll give it a shot.

Goodreads synopsis:  Having completed his sentence for the unintentional crime that derailed his youthful plans for fame and fortune, Levi Grant looks to start over in the town of Spencer, Texas. Spencer needs a blacksmith, a trade he learned at his father's knee, and he needs a place where no one knows his past. But small towns leave little room for secrets...

Eden Spencer has sworn off men, choosing instead to devote her time to the lending library she runs. When a mountain-sized stranger walks through her door and asks to borrow a book, she steels herself against the attraction he provokes. His halting speech and hesitant manner leave her doubting his intelligence. Yet as the mysteries of the town's new blacksmith unfold, Eden discovers hidden depths in him that tempt her heart.

Levi's renewed commitment to his faith leads Eden to believe she's finally found a man of honor and integrity, a man worthy of her love. But when the truth about his prodigal past comes to light, can this tarnished hero find a way to win back the librarian's affections?

Heroine:  Um, deluded, thinking education and refinement solves all brutish problems & pacifist.  As much as I pride myself on my intelligence, talking doesn't always work.  Otherwise, she's really nice.  Tender-hearted.  Learns quickly.  Smart.  Spunky.  Typical Miss living in a man's world.  Oh, and she's poison to flowers.  She makes a fine press, but she's not allowed around them when they're alive.

Hero:  Blacksmith.  Accidentally killed someone.  Spent time in prison for it.  Came back to Jesus like a prodigal.  Oh, and he has a lisp.  He has a great vocabulary so he can avoid s sounds.  Pretty likable even if he doesn't talk that much.

The Blow-Up*:  I cut my romance teeth on Victoria Alexander.  Her blow-ups are huge.  It always disappoints me when a romance book doesn't have a good one, if it has one at all.  In theory, you would think the blow-up would be when his secret past as a prizefighter comes to light.  While that does create a mini blow-up, it's not the blow-up.  I won't say what the blow-up is.

Overall:  Kinda cheesy, but romance is supposed to be.  Kinda preachy (okay, really preachy), but it's indicative of Christian fiction.  Hero met Heroine, they connect, and go through some stuff and then they go on to live happily ever after.

I've reviewed 2, maybe 3 books this year.  Why in the world did I take the time to review this?  

I liked it, would even recommend it.  It kept my attention and it didn't take me long to get through it.  Overall, I was pretty pleased with it.

*The Blow-Up is the part in a romance book or movie where you don't think the hero and heroine will wind up together.  It's also referred to as a Big Misunderstanding or The Big Fight, etc.  It's at the end right before the Big Reconciliation.

The Blacksmith Thing:  I have my own character who's vocation is smithing in my fantasy WiP.  I have a soft spot for smiths.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder by Joanne Fluke

I finished two of my bookmarked books today.  Number 2 was Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder by Joanne Fluke:

Goodreads Synopsis:  
No one cooks up a delectable, suspense-filled mystery quite like Hannah Swensen, Joanne Fluke's dessert-baking, red-haired heroine whose gingersnaps are as tart as her comebacks, and whose penchant for solving crimes-one delicious clue at a time-has made her a bestselling favorite. And it all began on these pages, with a bakery, a murder, and some suddenly scandalous chocolate-chip crunchies. Featuring a bonus short story and brand new, mouthwatering recipes, this new edition of the very first Hannah Swensen mystery is sure to have readers coming back for seconds.

Hannah already has her hands full trying to dodge her mother's attempts to marry her off while running The Cookie Jar, Lake Eden's most popular bakery. But once Ron LaSalle, the beloved delivery man from the Cozy Cow Dairy, is found murdered behind her bakery with Hannah's famous Chocolate Chip Crunchies scattered around him, her life just can't get any worse. Determined not to let her cookies get a bad reputation, she sets out to track down a killer. But if she doesn't watch her back, Hannah's sweet life may get burned to a crisp.


Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder by Joanne Fluke
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I really liked this.  It wasn't, oh this isn't the best book I've ever read, but it's okay.

No, this was actually a great book.  I love when we find out whodunit.  I'm relatively new to mysteries, and stick to the "cozy mysteries," and this one was just amazing.  The plotting, pacing, and a great cast.

Highly, highly recommended.

View all my reviews

A Matter of Magic by Patricia C. Wrede

Goodreads

A Matter of Magic is two books actually.  I thought about getting the books separately, but decided the cover was prettier and I'd have to get the separate editions used and they may not have matched...  Anyway, I got the omnibus.

Because I suck at describing things, here's what they're about:

Mairelon the Magician, book 1:

Kim doesn't hesitate when a stranger offers her a small fortune to break into the travelling magician's wagon in search of a silver bowl. Kim isn't above a bit of breaking-and-entering. Having grown up a waif in the dirty streets of London-disguised as a boy!-has schooled her in one hard lesson: steal from them before they steal from you.

But there is something odd about this magician. He isn't like the other hucksters and swindlers that Kim is used to. When he catches her in the act, Kim thinks she's done for.  Until he suggests she become his apprentice. Kim wonders how tough it could be faking a bit of hocus pocus.

But Mairelon isn't an act. His magic is real.

The Magician's Ward, book 2:

Happy in her new life as an apprentice to the powerful magician Mairelon, Kim is horrified when a nosy relative determines to turn Kim - a former street urchin - into. . .a lady! But real trouble begins when several wizards of Kim's acquaintance disappear. Then Mairelon's magic disappears!


I love Regency romances. I love fantasy. This book (these books?) is a little of both, with some mystery thrown in, which I've recently gotten into. I can't begin to explain how much I loved and enjoyed it. Well, there's the geek way: SQUEEE!!

If you've read any books by Patricia C. Wrede, you've probably read the Enchanted Forest Chronicles; first books I read by her and I was a junior in high school, I think.  A Matter of Magic, Mairelon, whatever you want to call these books were for a bit older audience.

The Regency part is, from what I've read of other Regencies, pretty accurate.  She captured the world better than some romance writers, who dominate the Regency era.  Bow street runners, Drury Lane, the opera, Napoleon Bonaparte...  Not to mention the silliness of Polite Society!

The fantasy part is great.  Magic isn't a big secret in this world.  Wizards are supposed to be a little odd.  There's even a Ministry for Wizardry.  A Royal College.  Plenty of smart wizards, and a Frenchwoman wizard, a Russian prince wizard.  Magic is, well, magic.  It's enchanting, pun intended.  When spells go bad...  And never, ever say a spell in your native tongue.

I have rudimentary experience with mysteries, so I can't make an intelligent comment on it, other than saying, like the rest of it, was pretty interesting and surprising.

I've been useless the past two days.  I read Mairelon the Magician yesterday started it in the morning, finished it last night, and started The Magician's Ward this morning and finished it quickly.  Less than 12 hours, between classes and animal care.

I don't know when's the last time I read a book I just couldn't put down.  I mean, even with books I love, like a Stephen Lawhead or Nectar from a Stone, I can stop anytime.  It doesn't bother me to take breaks.  I stretch it out as long as I need to.

I didn't want to do anything the past two days.  Nothing.  I wanted to sit and read this book.

Squee.

Slayers by C. J. Hill

4 stars

Goodreads Description:  Dragons exist. They’re ferocious. And they’re smart: Before they were killed off by slayer-knights, they rendered a select group of eggs dormant, so their offspring would survive. Only a handful of people know about this, let alone believe it – these “Slayers” are descended from the original knights, and are now a diverse group of teens that includes Tori, a smart but spoiled senator’s daughter who didn’t sign up to save the world.

The dragon eggs have fallen into the wrong hands. The Slayers must work together to stop the eggs from hatching. They will fight; they will fall in love. But will they survive?

I wanted to throw this book across the room when I finished it. There's a cliffhanger ending. If not for that, I would've given it a 5-star rating. Growl, growl, hiss, hiss.

Other than that, I loved it. It was a great way to lose a few hours...

...And because of the cliffhanger ending, I'm SO getting the next book when it comes out.

End Goodreads review.

I'm not familiar with the Percy Jackson books. I've heard of them, and my parents bought me the movie that I never watched, but somebody compared it to that. Which, from what I know, it's probably true.

Also, C. J. Hill is Janette Rallison's pseudonym. Just a thought for you.  She wrote the My Fair Godmother books, which I love, so I had to check this one out.

Miss Lacey's Last Fling by Candice Hern

Kindle cover (mine)

4 stars (or, since it's a romance, 4 kisses or roses)

I'm not entirely sure why I chose this book, other than the fact I read another Candice Hern book and I liked it enough try her books again.  It may have been that my best friend's name is Lacey.  It could have been the purple on the cover.  Whatever it was, I loved it, and just finished re-reading it.

Meet Rosie Lacey:  Oldest of six children  Raised the other five and has been running the house. Twenty-six years old.  She suspected she developed the same disease as her mother, and the doctor confirms it.  So, with whatever time she has left, she is going to London to cram a lifetime into a few short months.  She makes a list of all the things she wants to do and enlists the help of her scandal-laden aunt Fanny, who then gets the help of her late lover's son:

Print Cover

Max Davenant:  Rake extraordinaire.  Handsome.  You know the type.  Thirty-six.  His best friend had committed suicide, and he's considering following in his footsteps.  With Fanny's niece in town, the Season doesn't look like it's going to be so boring after all. 

The story:  Our dear dependable Rosie becomes the the fair Rosalind.  All the men are vying for her affections.  The stiff-necked matrons hate her.  Rosalind raced some curricles, waltzed without permission at Almack's, made tabloid covers, flirted dangerously with a rake (well, more than one), attended a masquerade, and even went inside a gaming hell and learned to play hazard.

Read no farther if you're interested in reading this because I'm about to ruin the book.

Rosie finds out she's not dying.  Rosie tries to kill Rosalind though.  She heads back to the country, leaving a very broken-hearted Max in her wake.

So, Fanny feigns illness and Rosie comes rushing back to London.  

The worst part of the whole book was when Max's friend's suicide note drops out of his pocket and Rosie picks it up.  She doesn't know what it is and later reads it.

Thinking Max wrote it, she rushes to his house to find him holding a razor to his neck...

"Don't do it, Max!"

When Max realizes what she thinks, he goes along with it.  This is one of those situations, had he told the truth, she would've slapped him for worrying her and the reader would've thought, "You should've just went with it, man."

So Max goes with it and convinces her to marry him.  The book does imply though that he does tell her the truth. Later.  Much later.  And then, after the couple plans this big fancy wedding with all the stops and all the guests have arrived, they elope.

Okay, you can look now.  

All in all, it's a pretty good story.

“All romantic novels end the same way, but it's the process of getting there that provides all the enjoyment.”
― Candice Hern, A Proper Companion

A Proper Companion was the first book I'd read by Candice Hern.  Most of her books (or all) are available on Kindle for really cheap.

Candice Hern is usually compared to Georgette Heyer.  Her website is considered one of the best for Regency information.

I don't make it a habit to review romances on here, I usually just worry about the fantasy and most of the YA, but since I re-read this one within a month of reading it the first time, I decided to review it.  It's the kind of book I want to talk about.

The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss

So, if you're wondering where I've been...

RECAP: The Name of the Wind

The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss




My rating: 4 of 5 stars




General reaction: um, well, erm...




I liked it a lot more than book 1, not to say I disliked book 1, but I enjoyed this one more. The writing's clever. It ends right. I don't ask for much as a reader.

If I had any fantasy-reading friends, I'd recommend the series to them.

Love on the Line by Deeanne Gist

Goodreads Synopsis:  In 1904 Texas Ranger Luke Palmer arrives in Brenham, Texas, with one goal—to capture the gang of outlaws led by Frank Comer. Undercover as a telephone repairman, he uses his days on the range to search, not realizing there's another pair of eyes watching him.

Georgie Gail, switchboard operator and birder, heads out on a birding expedition, but instead of sighting a painted bunting, her opera glasses capture her telephone man, armed and far away from telephone lines. Palmer is forced to take this alluring troublemaker into his confidence and unwittingly puts her in harm's way. The closer he comes to the gang, the further she works her way into his heart—and into trouble. Soon it's more than just love that's on the line.

Love on the Line by Deeanne Gist
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

As usual, Deeanne Gist gives up the goods.


hobbied heroinie + handsome, undercover lawman  = good, not overdone, but not underdone either.  Just right.


It's a fun read.  One thing I just love about Gist's books are that they are labeled romances and they actually say they love each other/kiss BEFORE the last page.  Amazing.


It didn't follow a typical romance arc, which was kind of surprising.  On top of that, I couldn't always guess what was going to happen.  Always good.


Highly recommended.