Katie's Reading...

'Black Sheep" by Georgette Heyer

2008-08-27T09:09:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 1402210787
Format: Paperback, 288pp
Publisher: Sourcebooks, Incorporated
Pub. Date: June 2008
Price: $13.95

I’m slowly but surely working my way through Georgette Heyer’s extensive catalogue of Regency and Historic romances. My latest read, and quite possibly my favorite, is Black Sheep which was first published 1966 but has recently been re-released by Sourcebooks Casablanca.

Our heroine, Abigail Wendover, believes that at 28 she is well past her prime. Living in Bath with her older unmarried sister Selina and in charge of her niece Fanny, the last thought on Abigail’s mind is romance. But when her young charge gets swept her off feet by Stacy Calverleigh, a known fortune hunter, Abigail turns to the rouge’s uncle for assistance.

But Miles Calverleigh, the acknowledged black sheep of the family, doesn’t really care what his good-for-nothing nephew Stacy is up to. He’s just returned from India, where he spent several years paying for a youthful mistake, and isn’t concerned with his relatives. And though he is immediately drawn to Abigail he still firmly refuses to help her in her rescue mission.

Stacy meanwhile has charmed the whole of Bath including Aunt Selina and Fanny feels herself very lucky to be the choice of a fashionable man. But Abigail has seen him for what he really is and as the young lovers prepare to elope Abigail does everything she can to stop it, with or without the help of Miles.

Of course one of the things I love so much about a Heyer Regency Romance are the wonderful secondary characters. The fussy relatives, the friends, and the place all play a huge role and add depth to the book. With stand out main characters and sharp, funny dialogue Georgette Heyer is an entertaining read from start to finish.

Over all Black Sheep was a lighter quicker read than Heyer’s An Infamous Army or Friday’s Child. While it’s defiantly shorter in length the feeling of the novel was also very different. The romance between Abigail and Miles Calverleigh, between these two older characters, is less formal than the romances in some of the other books. Abigail, sure that she couldn’t be in love, is just enjoying what she thinks of as a mild flirtation with the hopes of helping Fanny. But it hits her that her feelings are much, much more. Miles on the other hand realizes that Abigail is it from the start and won’t take no for an answer.

And the end? It’s perfect. I don’t think that I’ve enjoyed a Heyer ending more, and that’s saying a lot since they’re all good. Black Sheep is now one of my all time favorites and even though I’ve just finished it I think I might have to read it again. It’s that good.

'Superpowers' by David J. Schwartz

2008-06-25T10:14:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0307394409
Format: Paperback, 384pp
Publisher: Crown Publishing Group
Pub. Date: June 2008
Price: $14.95

(Note: this cover is the UK one. I just like it better)

The big question with this one is: Do you have to be a comics fan to get it? Easy answer: No you don’t. But it helps. Reading this novel you can tell the author is a huge fan. Big names like The Hulk, Spider Man, and Batman are dropped pretty early on and a conversation with a comic book store clerk confirms the fandom. But even if you aren’t into the graphic side of life there’s a good chance you’ll find something to like about David J. Schwartz's Superpowers.

“It all started with a party, which is damn convenient if you ask me, and if this weren’t a true story I wouldn’t expect you to believe it.” Marcus Hatch, an ex-reporter for his college paper with a bent toward conspiracy theories, writes in his introduction. He’s the one who recounts the tale of five collage students who suddenly find life holds more than they thought it could. In Wisconsin, on a street called Mifflin, a group of average collage kids get together to celebrate the end of term. The five settle into their home brewed beers never expecting that they will wake up the next morning and everything will have changed.

All five wake up with a superpower. Jack, a farm kid going to school full time and working, brewed the beer and wakes up with speed. Charlie, who has a crush on his neighbor Caroline and always seems to be worrying about something, wakes up with the power of telepathy. Caroline, the flirt that has caught Charlie’s attention, can now fly. Harriet, dedicated to the school paper and her love of music, can now turn invisible at will. Last but not least is Mary Beth who wakes up with super strength, a power that fits her best because out the whole group she could use it the most.

What these five discover is that having superpowers isn’t all fun and games. Each character has hardships and obstacles that they must face and overcome before they can grow and truly understand themselves and the gift they’ve been given. They have to decide if they should keep this to themselves or do some good with it by sharing with the world.

Superpowers will definitely hook you if you’re a 15 and up guy. There’s drinking and some sexual situations so this isn’t a book I’d pass off to anyone younger. And the writing is styled to hit the older market for young adults and beyond. It’s bittersweet, a lesson buried in there if you want to look about morality and responsibility, and if not the story is entertaining and unusual.

We’ve all heard the old adage ‘write what you know’ and to an extent Schwartz has done that. Sure he might not have the superpowers (or does he?) but he lived on Mifflin Street (where the characters live) and spent a lot of time in the area he based his novel around. You can feel that while reading, that this is a real place and real time and that maybe, just maybe, this could really happen.

'The Painter from Shanghai' by Jennifer Cody Epstein

2008-06-24T11:54:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0393065286
Format: Hardcover, 416pp
Publisher: Norton, W. W. & Company, Inc.
Pub. Date: March 2008
Price: $24.95

After turning the last page in The Painter from Shanghai, my first thought was one of amazement. This is Jennifer Cody Epstein’s first novel and it flows off the page as if some famous historical author had penned it. Which I’m sure she will be in time.

With a deft talent, not unlike a skilled painter, Jennifer Cody Epstein brings to life Pan Yuliang a “one-time prostitute, postimpressionist, and adopted Parisian” who lived from 1899-1977. Pan Yuliang was infamous as much for her past as her nude self-portraits, and Jennifer Cody Epstein brings this woman to life on the pages. Yuliang is a character so real that once the book is closed, she haunts you.

We are first introduced to Yuliang in 1957, working in a studio in France. She’s painting two nude models, swept up in her work, but the past creeps in. In the first few pages you are swept away by the strength of the woman on the page, her view of the world. Only once we have met her as a semi-successful artist do we go back and get the rest of the story.

At the age of fourteen Yuliang is sold into prostitution in Wuhu by her only living relative, an opium addicted uncle. Soon she has adapted to life in the Flower House, becoming the top-girls protégée and eventually taking over the spot. Here she meets Pan Zanhua, a government official who buys her out of her contract at the Flower House.

Yuliang goes to live with Zanhua which causes a stir in the town of Wuhu. But Zanhua isn’t just interested in her body or the services she could perform for him. He is unexpected in every way to Yulaing, in that he speaks to her as an equal and is interested in thoughts and beliefs. The two fall in love and Yliang becomes his second wife. Zanhua is a rock for Yuliang, supporting her ambitions for education and eventually her dreams to paint.

When the gossip becomes too much in Wuhu and begins to affect Zanhua’s career he moves Yuliang to Shanghai. It is in Shanghai that Yuliang starts to really sketch and expand on her natural born talent. She eventually attends school and goes abroad to study in France and Italy. Yulaing becomes famous for her nude self portraits as well as her blend of Western and Eastern styles. Yulaing’s dedication to her art eventually leads to her becoming a target of the Chinese government.

I have no real complaints with this novel. You are treated to the high points of Yuliang’s life and not bogged down with extra information, which in turn moves the novel forward at a steady pace that never falters. From her life in the false beauty of the Flower House to the streets of Paris, and the city and people in-between, Jennifer Cody Epstein breathes life into Pan Yulaing and when the book ends she only leaves you wanting more.

The Painter from Shanghai is by turns sad and uplifting, brilliant and bright as only an artist’s life can be. But Pan Yuliang isn’t the only artist on the page. Jennifer Cody Epstein paints this painter’s life with words, leaving the mind full of colorful images and half dreams as the pages swirl by.

'Making Money' by Terry Pratchett

2008-06-18T14:26:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0061161640
Format: Hardcover, 384pp
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Price: $25.95

Moist Von Lipwig is the original con man. He’s so good at it that he’s conned the entire city of Ank-Morpork into believing he’s honest and trustworthy. The thing is that they believe in him even though he keeps telling them they shouldn’t! After all, Ank-Morpork loves a good show. In Going Postal Moist took over the dying Ank-Morpork postal service and turned into a jewel of the city. So when the Royal Bank of Ank-Morpork falls on some hard times the obvious choice is the man in the Golden Suit.

Lord Vetinari, in a very Vetinari move, lets Moist maneuver himself into the job; a job that Moist is convinced he doesn’t necessarily want. But lately the Post Office just hasn’t felt the same and Moist is missing that zing from life that lets him know he’s alive. It doesn’t help that his fiancé, Adore Belle Dearheart or Spike for short, is away hunting Golems. With her gone Moist has resorted to Extreme Sneezing and picking all the locks in the Post Office building in the dark to get that zing.

But once Moist takes over the Royal Bank life is crackling again. He’s got a lot of work ahead of him if he’s going to convince the city that paper money is just as good as gold. Especially when the bank vaults turn out to be empty and oh-so-serious Mr. Bent, manger of the bank, decides that Moist isn’t the right kind of man for the job. With Cosmo Lavish, part owner of the bank, dreaming of being Vetinari and a man from Moist’s dark past creeping up from behind, Moist has a lot on his plate.

There are always a few supporting characters that steal the show. I’ve always been partial to the Igors when they show up, in whatever incarnation, and of course the Golems. In Making Money my hands down favorite was Mrs. Lavish. How fantastic is a gin-swilling, silver-cross-bow-toting old woman? Fantastic I tell you! Of course the Chairman was good too. How can you not love a dog that is partial to the kind of goodies kept in a bedside drawer? My one complaint with this whole wonderful book is that I felt Pratchett could have gone into more detail with the Royal Mint and the men who actually make the money, The Men of the Sheds. Instead these aspects were glossed over, mystery hinted at but never uncovered. I hate to complain (says the complainer) but I wanted more damnit! More!

However when I’m feeling a bit down and need a laugh I pick up my well loved paperback copy of (insert title here). You can’t go wrong with any of the Discworld novels. But, like his characters, Prachett is well rounded. He’ll make you laugh and think, possibly even tear up before a book ends. (Usually with laughter) Pratchett uses his humor to comment on the world today and the relevant issues we face. But he’s never preachy about it and he doesn’t let it get in the way of a good story.

If you are going to read Terry Pratchett for the first time I wouldn’t start with Making Money. You’ll get more out of this title if you’ve read Going Postal (especially since both books contain the same set of characters) and you’d get even more out of it if you’ve read the rest of the Discworld series.

'The Thirty-Nine Steps' by John Buchan

2008-06-10T08:02:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0141033738
Format: Paperback, 148pp
Publisher: Viking Penguin
Price: $10.00

First published in 1915, The Thirty-Nine Steps is John Buchan’s first book in which Richard Hannay has one of his many adventures. This newest edition is part of Penguin’s Great Books for Boys collection, which focuses on celebrating the adventurer within every boy. It’s not just boys who have an inner adventurer. The series, whether you’re young or old, male or female, will appeal to those who enjoy a thrilling edge-of-your-seat read.

Set just four weeks before World War I, The Thirty-Nine Steps is the story of Richard Hannay and his entanglement with international spies and a German plot to steal British military secrets. He is bored with London life and is considering moving on when he meets his seemingly normal upstairs neighbor. The man, who begs to be let into his apartment, soon tells a tale too grand to be a lie.

He is an American spy with knowledge of an assassination to take place on June 15th and that will rock Europe. Upon hearing the truth in the man’s words, Richard decides to help him. When he arrives home one evening to discover the spy’s body with a knife sticking through the heart, Richard realizes how entangled he has become. With one man murdered and the killers after him, Richard decides to run - and stay on the run until the 15th comes around so he can try to prevent the murder of another innocent man.

Through the wilds of Scotland, Richard is chased by a dark, unknown enemy, as well as his own country’s police. Between frantic chase scenes and thrilling escapes, Richard tries to unlock the secrets held in the murdered American spy’s diary. The diary is the key to it all, and Richard could save the day if only he could discover what “the thirty-nine steps” means before it’s too late.

One of the things I loved so much about this book was the feel for the era. It helps that it was written about the time the novel took place. I just don’t think, no matter how meticulously you do your research, that a modern author could have hit the same chords or achieved the same feeling. From the language and settings to the places and people, The Thirty-Nine Steps is perfect entertainment.

The book is short, just 160 pages, and you’ll want to read it all in one go. From the moment you first meet Richard as he becomes embroiled in a plot that covers nations, you just can’t put the book down. Honestly, why would you want to?

'Friday's Child' by Georgette Heyer

2008-06-09T10:27:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 1402210795
Format: Paperback, 432pp
Publisher: Sourcebooks, Incorporated
Price: $12.95

If you’re looking for a good laugh with your Regency romance, look no father than Friday’s Child, another of Georgette Heyer’s engrossing and unforgettable novels.

Lord Sherrington - Sherry for short - is exactly the kind of young man any woman would be lucky to have; rich, well bred, and dashing, he has any number of nice qualities to recommend him. Or so he thinks, and when the Incomparable Beauty Miss Milborne, a childhood friend, refuses him in marriage he can’t understand why. On top of that, she accuses him of being a libertine and a gambler who doesn’t love her anyway. But Sherry isn’t going to give up on marriage that easily; it just might not involve Miss Milborne.

Sherry is determined that he should be married before his 25th birthday so that he might come into his inheritance sooner. Of course, it doesn’t help that he has a number of gambling debts hanging over his head, nothing too deep mind you, but just enough to make a gentleman a bit nervous. Sherry swears as he leaves Miss Milborne that he will marry the first woman he meets. Fortunately for him, that woman is Miss Hero Wantage.

Hero, another childhood friend of Sherry’s, has worshiped him from day one, and when he sweeps her off her feet in a run away marriage she feels just like Cinderella. Of course Hero might not be as beautiful as Miss Milborne or as refined and educated, but she has her charms, namely among them her innocence and complete trust in Sherry. So when Sherry says that it will be a marriage of convenience and he won’t interfere with her life if she doesn’t interfere with his, she agrees. However, going from a quiet country life as a poor relation to the bride of one of the more eligible men in London, Hero is sure to get herself into a few tight spots. Between Sherry’s wonderful friends, who take it upon themselves to look after Hero and of course Sherry, they manage to pull her out of each one with only a few minor scrapes and her reputation intact.

The premise for Friday’s Child is one that has been done a million times before and will be done a million times again. Girl and boy fall in love without realizing it or meaning to, and after a few slapstick mistakes, they live happily ever after. However, Georgette Heyer puts a smart spin on it, and with her secondary characters (here for comedic relief), the story comes to life. With each problem that Hero faces, you will both cringe and laugh. When Sherry finally realizes that he loves his wife above all things, you have to smile.

Friday’s Child is a cut above the rest, which is saying quite a lot since this is Georgette Heyer we’re talking about and all her books happen to be fantastic. Friday’s Child is filled with likable characters that stick with you and witty dialogue that will make you laugh out loud. This was one I simply couldn’t put down, and I even took it to the gym with me and turned pages while I cycled away to nowhere. It’s just that great.

'Window on the Square' by Phyllis A. Whitney

2008-04-03T14:38:00.000-07:00

Danger, romance, and suspense! All these things can be found in Phyllis A. Whitney’s Window on the Square. Published in 1962, this classic novel of romantic suspense was called a “haunting absorbing suspense” by the Columbus Enquirer and “a superior whodunit” by the New York Morning Telegraph.

The scene is late fall in New York in the 1870’s. The weather is just starting to get colder, leaves falling to skitter across the pavement, and the smell of snow is in the air. The women are wearing long gowns complete with bustles, and Megan Kincaid is all alone in the world. She recently lost her mother and only sibling, a younger brother with a disability, in a runaway coach accident. Megan, armed only with her inferior dressmaking skills, is facing the unknown.

Megan’s salvation comes in the guise of Mrs. Brandon Reid. At one time Leslie Reid had been married to the prominent New York District Attorney, Dwight Reid, the golden child of the city, who was gunned down in an unfortunate accident involving his seven-year-old son, Jeremy. Now Mrs. Reid is married to Dwight’s older brother, Brandon, and the house in which the murder happened is filled with the echoes of a single gun shot.

Asked to the house under the pretense of making Mrs. Reid a new gown, Megan knows her paltry skills would in no way please the coldly elegant beauty that is Leslie Reid. Once at the house on Washington Square, Megan is interviewed not by Mrs. Reid, but Mr. Reid. He apologizes for the false pretense and quickly explains he had heard of her wonderful success with her disabled brother and wonders if she would be willing to work with his nephew Jeremy.

Jeremy, he explains, is troubled and is heading down a path in which he could be lost forever. Megan, seeing the need of the small child, quickly agrees and moves into the house on Washington Square where she is installed on the third floor - but things in this elegant house filled with elegant people are not as they ought to be.

Observing Mr. and Mrs. Reid’s relationship, Megan notices the chill and reserve they both wear at times; the masks they use to hide whatever burning emotions lurk beneath. Mrs. Reid’s old governess, and now the keeper of Jeremy’s younger sister, Selina, Miss Garth instantly dislikes Megan and viscously attacks her character on several occasions. The children’s tutor, Mr. Beach, warns Megan that Jeremy is a lost cause and that she should escape the house as soon as possible, least something horrible befall to her.

What really happened that night so long ago between Jeremy and his father? Why does Miss Garth so viciously dislike Megan? What is it that Mr. Beach is so afraid will happen? Why does Mrs. Reid stay closed away in her room? And why, oh why, is Mr. Brandon Reid going out of his way to please Megan?

You will be kept on the edge of your seat as the story unfolds and Megan comes closer and closer to a truth that will destroy the imagined peace at the house on Washington Square.

'Deep Inside' by Polly Frost

2008-03-27T14:12:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0765315874
Format: Paperback, 272pp
Publisher: Doherty, Tom Associates, LLC
Pub. Date: May 2007
Price: $12.95

When I first came across Deep Inside I wasn’t sure what to think. Science Fiction Erotica? That had to mean there was going to be tentacle sex in there somewhere.

Now I’ve seen a lot of Japanese animation involving this idea, not all of it hentai, so it’s not like that idea is completely new. Okay, so maybe it’s strange but only as strange as that guy in the back of the bus wearing nothing but a trench coat and a pair of gym socks. Or your parent’s locked bedside table drawer.

But Deep Inside has more to offer than just tentacles. It also contains virgin sacrifice complete with Catholic School girls in uniform, a couple who experiments with piercing, serial killers and a dominatrix. What collection would be complete without one of those? If you are looking for your standard ‘tie me up, tie me down’ type of erotica this isn’t it. Nothing about Deep Inside is standard or what you have come to expect from the genre.

From “The Threshold” to “Deep Inside”, the title story of the collection, you meet virgins and voyeurs, addicts, masturbation masters, aliens with a hard on for humans, and anything you can think of in between. Frost builds each story, crafting backgrounds and character histories, and then punctuates them with sex. So while it is erotica, these stories actually have plot and Frost’s voice comes across the page strong and clear.

The ideas behind the stories contained within Deep Inside are over the edge. I can promise you will never look at alien abduction or piercing the same way again. This collection of stories pushes the boundaries of what you might find enticing, stimulating, or liberating and Polly Frost will take your unsuspecting mind into an unknown you might even enjoy.

'Born Standing Up – A Comic’s Life' by Steve Martin

2008-03-26T11:33:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 1416553649
Format: Hardcover, 224pp
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing Group
Pub. Date: November 2007
Price: $25.00

A friend of mine passed along her copy of Born Standing Up – A Comic’s Life with glowing praise and I sat down to read it with high expectations.

It’s hard not to be familiar with Steve Martin in some way, shape, or form. From his stand up, which made him famous and opened doors for him, to the books and movies he’s written and starred in, Steve Martin has a face that is instantly recognizable.

Born Standing Up isn’t about Steve Martin’s successful years as a stand up comedian. It’s about the years it took to get to that point, the time invested and material tested before he became the best. The final chapter almost comes as a shock, you go from reading about setbacks and small triumphs, until suddenly it all explodes and there stands Steve Martin, at the top.

In a voice that is precise yet fluid, Martin lays his past before the readers. His is an unemotional voice; these are the facts, beautifully written but not embellished. His life growing up, scenes with his father, his detachment from his family and reconnection in later years; all these things are gone through, but quickly and with no bitterness or regret.

Martin goes over his early years growing up, summers spent working in Disneyland in joke and magic shops. His fleeting crushes on pretty faces and the hopes that a smooth card trick might do the trick. It was wonderful to read and see how his passion and dedication grew as he aged, his desire to perform started so early and just intensified as the years passed.

Through his young adult years, awkward and filled with passing loves, into his adult years the passion for getting up in front of crowd never wavered. From dark and seedy bars, a stint at Knott’s Berry Farm, Playboy clubs, and eventually the big times Steve talks about his routine; how he worked on it, tightened it, and eventually turned it into what would make a crowd laugh hysterically for hours.

Born Standing Up – A Comic’s Life is a wonderful look into the life of a stand up comedian, but not just any comedian. Steve Martin has done it all, suffered through the worst of the worst and come out the other side as one of the most famous names in the business. It’s sharp and insightful, early on there are a few pages that tug at the heart, but mostly it’s just an engrossing look at what life is like when you’re born standing up.

'The Somnambulist' by Jonathan Barnes

2008-03-14T13:48:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0061375381
Format: Hardcover, 353pp
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Pub. Date: February 2008
Price: $23.95

Peopled with the odd and the outstanding, The Somnambulist by Jonathan Barnes is a macabre tale of crime told by an almost nameless narrator. We are warned from the beginning that this book contains no literary value and that we should not become attached to its characters. Of course the narrator does leave it up to us to decide and in the end you can’t help but be engrossed by the characters and tale that is spun like a web across the page.

Edward Moon is a man who once was the toast of this 19th century London; he is a conjuror, an illusionist of the highest order who also has a reputation for solving the unsolvable crimes that baffle the police. A constant companion to Moon is the Somnambulist, a man with no other name, who is completely silent, communicates via a chalk board and has a passion for milk.

But Moon has seen better times; he is past his prime, hair finally starting to thin and clothes which were once the height of fashion now worn. He belongs to an older time, an older London in which there were great criminal cases to occupy his mind and his theater was full every night as he performed his illusions with the Somnambulist. Those times have passed. A new century has begun and it seems as if Edward Moon will fade into the past, something he is loathe to do.

When there is a mysterious murder Detective Merryweather comes to Moon for help. Moon, desperate and bored, jumps at the chance to prove that he still has his edge and with the Somnambulist in tow he jumps into the investigation. But like any good 19th century sensation novel The Somnambulist is a twisty, curvy tale that leads you in many directions as once. While the answer in the end is constant the question throughout the book changes. The murder is just the tip of the iceberg and soon Moon is trying to uncover a conspiracy that could bring London to her knees.

The characters are unique and wonderful by turns as well as sick and depraved. My favorites are the deadly duo, those cheerful bringers of death and destruction, the Prefects. Yes, from the moment they stabbed someone in the heart with an umbrella and opened it they had my heart. These two men, one large and one small, are always dressed in school boy uniforms and both have permanently cheerful demeanors. You can’t do anything but love, or be slightly sickened by this very imaginative, murderous pair. There are also such standouts like The Fly, Mina a bearded prostitute, a man who lives his life backward, a vagrant that carries a sign which reads “Surely I Am Coming Soon. Revelation 22:20” and an albino civil servant with a penchant for arson.

In the final chapters the narrator is revealed and the story which up until this point was more of a period crime novel with elements of the fantastic becomes complete fantasy. It builds slowly so that once this change finally does happen it makes complete sense and you can’t imagine the story taking any other turn. The Somnambulist is a dark and slightly odd tale that is not to be missed whether you’re a fan of… well anything. This is simply a must read.

'Seduction More Beautiful Than Love...' Vol. 1 by Lee Hyeon-Sook

2008-03-13T08:48:00.000-07:00

Price: $9.99
ISBN: 142780608X
Format: Paperback, 192pp
Publisher: TOKYOPOP
Pub. Date: March 2008

If you’re looking for a romance with a bit of drama, then look no farther than Seduction More Beautiful Than Love by Lee Hyeon-Sook. SBL was first published in a discontinued manga magazine entitled White, but Hyeon-Sook has made some character changes and minor plot changes for the Tokyopop volumes. So if you’ve read this one before it’s worth taking another look.

Daoun is in her first year of teaching high school when she meets Ryumin, a very handsome senior, who is known as the school’s Prince Charming. Daoun can’t help but be attracted to mysterious Ryumin, who is more man than boy, and when the attraction appears to be mutual she isn’t sure what she’ll do.

Determined to remain coolly professional, Daoun puts her best teacher face forward. Ignoring Ryumin’s staring eyes and trying to forget his haunting words she goes on with her job. It pays off when she gets made a temporary homeroom teacher. Daoun is beyond ecstatic and determined to prove herself worthy.

Then out of the blue an old friend shows up, Hyunwoo was an old classmate and is now a new work colleague. Though Dauon hasn’t noticed he is more than just a little in love with her, he is head over heels. But Hyunwoo is shy and when he makes an effort to share the perfect day with Daoun it all goes wrong.

With tall, dark, and handsome but highly mysterious Ryumin pursuing Daoun and Hyunwoo trying his best to make her notice there is a steamy love triangle in the making. But Ryumin has a jealous girlfriend waiting in the wings and Daoun seems to be blind to both men’s attention as the drama at school escalates.

The artwork on this one is average. There are some scenes where the faces are left blank and I found that a bit jarring at first but as the story moved forward it ceased to bother me. The drama/romance picks up quickly and you just can’t help but turn pages as awkward situations are blown out of proportion or misconstrued. Seduction More Beautiful Than Love or SBL will keep any soap opera fan turning pages.

'Blood Price' by Tanya Huff

2008-03-12T14:04:00.000-07:00

Price: $6.99
ISBN: 0756405017
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 272pp
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)

I was in my favorite used bookstore the other day when I ran across a copy of Blood Price by Tanya Huff. I’ve heard a ton of good things about the series and I picked it up because I’m a sucker for anything with a vampire in it. I wasn’t disappointed.

Blood Price is the first in the Blood series which centers around an ex-cop and a vampire. Vicki “Victory” Nelson was the best detective on the force in Toronto and she left at the top of her game. Now a year later she’s working as a private investigator but she’s bitter about the circumstances in which she left.

Coming home late one night on the subway she hears a scream and runs to investigate. Though she knows that it’s a stupid thing to do without back up, and without even a badge, Vicki rushes into an unknown situation just to prove to herself that she still has what it takes. She finds much more than she was counting on.

Across the city people are dying in a horrific way; their throats are being torn out and their bodies drained of all blood. Henry Fitzroy is furious when he sees the headlines in the paper, and knowing that it’s only a matter of time before the public starts screaming ‘Vampire’ - he decides to do something about it.

When Vicki and Henry’s paths finally cross each must make the decision to trust the other. Henry gets someone to confide his secret in, the fact that he is a vampire, and Vicki gets a supernatural edge on a case that just seems to get worse. Throw in detective Mike Celluci, Vicki’s ex-partner as well as lover, a demon terrorizing the city of Toronto and you’ve got a paranormal mystery that’s hard to beat.

Blood Price is a great book. You get such a feel for the characters, especially Vicki, and each one comes across solid and three dimensional. One of the things that makes the difference is the fact that each back story is so well thought out. Henry Fitzroy is made more real for each flashback and Vicki and Mike are perfect because of their tumultuous history. You become lost in the story, and trust me it’s easy to do, as the three try to find a killer that is less than human.

Another cool thing for those fans of Tanya Huff is that this series has been adapted into a television series, Blood Ties, on Lifetime. I might have to break down and get cable just so I can watch this series because if it’s even half as good as Blood Price then I’m already a fan.

'Stardust' by Neil Gaiman

2008-03-10T11:57:00.000-07:00

Price: $13.95
ISBN: 0061142026
Format: Paperback, 250pp
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers

I bought a copy of Stardust a few months before the movie came out in 2007. I told myself firmly that I would not see the movie until after I had read the book. But there always seemed to be something else I needed to be reading or wanted to read so Stardust sat on my shelf as the release date for the movie came and went.

I listened to my friends gush and rave about the movie; how not since The Princess Bride had they loved a fairy tale so much. But as badly as I wanted to go and see it I resisted the temptation, standing firm by my choice to read the book first. In the end, I saw the movie first. I’m a firm believer that no matter what the book is always better. I don’t care what movie or book it is; I don’t care who wrote it or who is directing it. The book is better, hands down. In the case of Stardust I have to admit that they are both equally wonderful.

There are differences between the book and the movie, just enough that I felt as if the two don’t compete against each other for the number one spot in my heart. The movie stays true to the spirit of the book while adding a whole new element to this swashbuckling tale of adventure and true love. In my opinion there just aren’t enough stories like this one, of course if this kind of fairy tale were common place I might not love it as much as I do.

In the town of Wall, named for the wall by which it stands, a young man by the name of Tristran Thorn promises a fallen star to the town beauty in the hopes that it will capture her heart.

Of course the story really starts much earlier than that, with a fair on the borders of faerie where a man falls in love with a girl who is not quite human. The fair, held every nine years, is the only time in which the local villagers of Wall are allowed to cross the wall.

When Tristran wants to cross the wall years later he is permitted, though he does not realize why. Soon he is on his way across the magical lands of Faerie in search of the fallen star. Along the way he meets a strange little man who his father once did a good turn for; the stranger in turn helps Tristran along his way.

Once Tristran finally finds the star, who just happens to be a girl, it isn’t long before he loses her. Of course, he isn’t the only one after the star and in the end becomes the Star’s rescuer as he battles ancient witches and blood thirsty princes.

There are elements of the fantastic, the wonderful and bizarre, and Neil Gaiman touches on the fairy tales we grew up reading. Red caps are mentioned and a unicorn and lion battle it out for a crown; these are scenes from much earlier tales that trigger the part of your brain that truly believes that magic is real and happy endings do come true. As if we could ever really stop believing. Filled with talking trees, princes and princesses, magic and wonder, witches, and of course a wonderful love story, Stardust should not be missed.

There is also the element of humor, which to me smacks of Terry Pratchett who co-wrote Good Omens with Gaiman, but the humor, in the end, is purely Gaiman. An example of this is once the star has fallen to earth and he has spent the better part of a page describing the beautiful star falling, “And there was a voice, a high clear, female voice which said, “Ow,” and then, very quietly, it said “Fuck,” and then it said “Ow,” once more.” I just had to laugh as I read that, I don’t know how you couldn’t.

So read the book and see the movie, in which ever order you like. If you haven’t already read the book but loved the movie I hope it inspires you to dip into Gaiman’s unforgettable fairy tale. I’m not going to say it’s better but just as wonderful in another way.

2008-01-16T09:34:00.001-08:00

I'm getting a divorce. For whatever reason I've decided to call it quits. The reason doesn't matter. Okay, that's a giant lie; but let's just pretend that it doesn't matter. Let's say no one was at fault, that my marriage just didn't work out.

"That's how the cookie crumbles" and other little annoying sayings will now be repeated to me for the next year. When they (coworkers, family, friends, and strangers in the bar I start to talk to after one drink too many) ask me if I'm okay in a tone of voice that makes me want to open their mouths and shove tennis balls down their throats, I'll just say I'm fine. I'm fine. Dandy. Wonderful. Freaking Fantastic - and yes, I will say it with capital letters.

Before I knew it I had written my name next to his for the last time. It was a final sheet of almost blank paper with titles like "The Petitioner" and other legal jargon typed across it. As the ink slowly dried on the page, a stark black that is now forever imprinted on my mind, it hit me that very soon I would be legally divorced.

I'm 23-years-old. Aren't I a little young for this sort of thing? My husband and I were married before our 21st birthdays. We weren't even old enough to drink legally at our wedding, not that it mattered. I remember looking at my left hand while I sipped champagne - a ring, a band, a mark that said forever in silent desperate words. I have to admit it scared me even then.

I beat most of my friends to the altar. They followed one by one, paired up and matched up like they were ready for the Flood to start and with looks on their lovesick faces like "Where's the damn boat?" If they aren't married they are thinking about getting married; and if they are married they are thinking about kids. And I'm getting divorced. I'm the perpetual third wheel, or fourth - if they already have a cute drooling bundle of soggy joy.

That isn't the worst part. The worst part is when it comes to girls' nights out. They turn to me with sad cow eyes after talking about their kids and ask if I want kids. The word "no" rolls out so fast and hard off my tongue I swear you could clock it in at 90 miles an hour. I don't hesitate. I don't sit and think. I spit that word out before the god of mischief and misfortune decides to give me a surprise the next time my cycle comes around. Oops, birth control is only 98% effective and those little blue lines on the home test kits scare the crap out of me.

If it isn't the sad cow face over kids, then I get the look for the fact that I just want to be alone right now. I don't want to be someone's wife, mother, or girlfriend. Right now I'm happy being me, relieved not to have to worry about anyone, or do someone else's laundry. I don't want to get married again. Sure I want a long-term relationship with a wonderful dreamboat man, but I don't want to live with anyone again. You can have your house and I'll have mine. We can do sleepovers and have pillow fights.

I was lucky in that my divorce has been easy. It shouldn't be this easy. We had no debt, no kids, and no house. We shared a last name, something that very soon will be changed, and that was about it. I'm starting over for the first time. I'm doing things I had never done on my own: my first bank account, my first cell phone bill, and my first apartment. I missed out on a lot of firsts because I went straight from living with my family to living with my husband.

I'm a divorced woman. Okay, so I'm not divorced yet since a judge hasn't signed the papers, but it's pending. Even though I wish it didn't, being divorced does come with a certain stigma. A very cute guy told me the other day that he would never date a divorced woman. My family doesn't believe in divorce. You hear the word divorce and even in our very modern society it rings certain bells. Maybe not as much as it used to, but I live in the Bible belt, and around here they take marriage seriously (which is why, here in Oklahoma, we have one of the highest rates of divorce in the country). I would cough and say "hypocrites" here, but you wouldn't be able to hear me.

You would think being the person that makes the choice to leave would make it less painful; when you shove everything you own into trash bags and grab your hissing cats that it would hurt less. Never believe for one moment that the person who leaves isn't in pain, that their heart isn't breaking, broken, gone. Throw in a nice healthy dose of guilt and you've got yourself one hell of a deal. I just can't understand why everyone hasn't tried this at least once.

2007-12-05T07:43:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone! I will be taking a break for awhile. Not sure when I will be back. But until then check out all the wonderful blogs on my blogroll and visit Blogcritics!

'The Demon Ororon' Vol. 1-4 by Hakase Mizuki

2007-12-04T08:45:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 1427807329
Format: Paperback, 880pp
Publisher: TOKYOPOP
Pub. Date: December 18, 2007
Price: $19.99

“So it was in the fall of my fifteenth year… that my first love died. He was just some broken guy I picked up on a rainy day… some lonely devil … who had beautiful dark gray eyes… and smelled like blood.”

Don’t expect it to end happily. Not everything does. Don’t expect it to be perfect. Not everything is. Prepare to fall in love and get your heart broken. Prepare to hold your chin up knowing what will come and how it will turn out. You won’t turn away, not because you wouldn’t like to but because you can’t.

When Chiaki meets Ororon he’s sitting in the rain, soaked and hurt, waiting to die. But she takes him home with her, against the advice of her best friend Rika, and treats his wounds. Chiaki is just one of those people with a good heart; a pacifist to her core, she abhors violence, so when she learns that this mysterious man she’s rescued is none other than the King of Hell she isn’t sure what to think. But her heart, which very rarely has anything to do with the head, falls in love with him anyway.

Ororon immediately recognizes Chiaki for what she is and understands why she has been followed all her life by monsters and ghosts, and why she can give them a kind of release. Chiaki is the daughter of an angel and a human, but not just any angel — her father was the Archangel Michael. But can a half breed angel and the Lord of Hell not only coexist but love?

Because Chiaki has saved Ororon’s life he offers to grant her one wish. That wish? For Ororon to stay with her forever, which he grants without a moment's hesitation. But Ororon and Chiaki aren’t going to have it easy. Ororon left his throne and ran into the mortal world, trying to escape the constant assassination attempts made by his older brothers, each of which want the throne for themselves. They aren’t going to stop just because he’s left hell.

With a large cast of characters ranging from the wonderfully cute demon cat brothers Shiro and Kuro, demon house keeper Miss Lucy, Ororon’s brother Othello — not to mention the many evil brothers and demons that come into play — this story moves swiftly and surely toward the inevitable ending.

This is Romeo and Juliet between Hell and Heaven. The damned and the good falling in love and struggling to find that middle ground where life can be lived in all gray tones; where the stark bleak realities of a black and white world don’t overshadow a tender passion surrounded by blood and sin.

The Demon Ororon should be recommended reading for everyone, a timeless story filled with enough gore to keep the guys turning pages while the heart-wrenching love story will keep most girls involved. Not to mention the elongated stylized bodies, and the tilted faces with side long glances that pop from the page and bring each moment into painful reality.

On December 18th Tokyopop is releasing an edition with all four volumes in one. Trust me, you will want to read it this way, because once I finished volume one I couldn’t stop until I had devoured the others. Lose yourself in The Demon Ororon — a story of heartbreak and belonging, of fighting and loving and lessons in how, in the end sometimes, it just doesn’t work out.

'Dancing with Werewolves' by Carole Nelson Douglas

2007-12-03T14:30:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 0809572036
Format: Paperback, 240pp
Publisher: Juno Books
Pub. Date: October 2007
Price: $6.99

When the millennium came around a few things changed. But it wasn’t the computers that everyone had prepared themselves for. Instead everything that humans thought of as myth or legend revealed themselves to be true; vampires, werewolves, ghouls, witches, ghosts, and everything else that you think of while hiding under the blanket at 3am. They came out of the closet, and from under the bed, and demanded to be included in society.

Delilah Street was named after where she was found abandoned as a baby. She grew up in an orphanage, the center of constant attacks of one kind or another. Delilah is what she refers to as vampire bait. With black hair and pale creamy skin she has every vampire in a 100 mile area putting the moves on her, or at least trying to. But growing up like that taught Delilah how to defend herself. It also gave her a nose for the paranormal.

Now all grown up, Delilah is working at a paranormal reporter for a small town Kansas TV station. She’s happy there, having carved out her own spot and made herself a fixture with the local residents. She does anything and everything relating to the paranormal. But when a date with her vampire co-worker goes bad, Delilah gets frozen out at work. So with her self respect and the clothes on her back she high tails it to Las Vegas.

Once in Vegas she runs into Ric Montoya, a former FBI agent who has a nose for finding dead bodies. When the two connect over a double grave everything that Delilah knows about herself will change. Haunted by strange alien abduction nightmares and coming to terms with the fact that she might not be completely human, Delilah and Ric unravel the mystery of the dead couple.

The big draw for me with this one is the alternate history. I’ve read several paranormal novels that deal with a world in which vampires and werewolves are everyday things. Some authors handle it better than others and while Douglas’ world isn’t the best I’ve found, it is one that I wouldn’t mind spending some time in.

Carole Nelson Douglas’ writing is crisp and edgy. As I read Delilah’s voice came through loud and clear, a perfect mix of hard-nosed reporter and small town girl. She’s a likable character, the kind that you would quickly become a best friends with. Dancing with Werewolves is a wonderful addition to the paranormal genre and I can only hope that we’ll be seeing Delilah again.

'The Tarot Cafe' Vol. 6 by Sang-Sun Park

2007-12-01T08:40:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 142780396X
Format: Paperback, 192pp
Publisher: TOKYOPOP
Pub. Date: October 2007
Price: $9.99

In the sixth volume of The Tarot Café all of the characters are finally starting to realize they have become pawns in a much larger game. The missing pieces of the broken necklace of Berial that Pamela has been searching for are coming together. Once she has all the pieces if she so chooses she can finally die with Belus’ aid.

Belus meanwhile has realized that Pamela is much more to him than just a means to an end, much more in fact than just a partner in a contract. He has told her that life with her would never be boring, and coming from an immortal being that is saying quite a lot. He has shed blood for her, come to realize that he loves her, and in the end he might even die for her.

There is only one episode in this volume, Episode 17, “Invitation to Hell,” and all the pushing and pulling, the maneuvering by some unseen hand, has finally stopped. The players and the pawns, the characters of the stories have come to face what is inside their hearts.

Pamela finally remembers details of her past and come to see the truth about those in her present. Ash still has not realized that in another life he was Pamela’s lover, her protector and savior. He has no memories of their time together and has come to hate her in this life because he believes she stole Belus’ affection. Ash saw Belus as a father, his best friend and the one person who understood him, but when Belus left Ash to return to Pamela years previously Ash never recovered. Ash would do anything to keep Pamela from stealing Belus, including murdering his former love.

Pamela also learns the true identity of Berial, what his true face is behind the beautiful mask he wears. She comes to realize that it has been his hand all along that had guided her life, ruined her happiness and love. Berial has done nothing but take from Pamela, nothing but play with her life from the very beginning. Can she find a way to escape this dangerous game?

The artwork is stunning, each character beautifully drawn and detailed. Park’s continued fascination with fairy tales and gorgeous men have given the series a distinctive feel, a flavor that is purely Tarot Café, Making this series one of the best rendered manga I have read.

The seventh and final volume will be released in June of 2008. We will see what fate has chosen for Pamela and those around her, whether her love for Belus will be enough to keep him alive. The destiny of the lonely werewolf Aaron and his protector Nebiros; and finally Ash’s fate, lover and betrayer, friend and foe. I can’t imagine it will end too happily but I’ve got my fingers crossed anyway.

'The Tarot Cafe' Vol. 5 by Sang-Sun Park

2007-11-30T14:59:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 1427803951
Format: Paperback, 192pp
Publisher: TOKYOPOP
Pub. Date: May 2007
Price: $9.99

Pamela is a Tarot Card reader for the supernatural. Ghosts, werewolves, fairies, immortals, dragons, and other worldly beings all come to her for help. Whether she reveals something about themselves that they had not realized or points them in the right direction, Pamela touches each of their lives and in turn they touch hers.

As the story has progressed we’ve learned about Pamela’s dark and miserable past. We have learned that with the death of Ash, a dragon and Pamela’s lover, centuries before Pamela has became immortal. When his blood was spilled it touched her first, marking her and setting her apart from the rest of humanity. Lost without Ash, Pamela has spent her immortality searching for a way to end her life, convinced that there I nothing worth living for with Ash gone.

Belus, the mysteriously handsome man who hangs around the café, has offered to help Pamela achieve her goal if she will do one thing for him. Pamela must find all the missing beads of Berial’s legendary necklace. Slowly but surely Pamela has collected bead by bead and soon will have all the beads she needs to fulfill her contract with Belus.

But Belus, who when he first met Pamela centuries before, told her that she wasn’t really his type has gone soft on her. Concerned with her well being, bent on protecting her, Belus is struggling with himself torn by hidden agendas and the desire to keep things between him and Pamela as they are.

Episode 14 “Leanan Sidhe (Two)” finishes the tale started in volume four. The famous rock singer narrowly escapes the clutches of his beautiful but deadly muse. While the muse, a dangerous woman known as the Leanan Sidhe, wonders if the rocker really cared for her at all or just the talent she offered.

In Episode 15 “Perfume” Ash reveals himself to be completely ruthless. Though he is not exactly the dragon that Pamela once loved he does seem to have memories of her. He is also jealous of the relationship that has grown between Pamela and Belus, though he does not seem to want her for himself he doesn’t exactly want Belus to have her.

When Ash takes part in the kidnapping of Pamela, Belus rushes to her rescue. A twisted perfume maker is draining blood from Pamela to make a perfume of youth, Pamela’s blood being the main ingredient since it is immortal. But to get Pamela to a point where they could take her blood Ash has used a perfume on her that makes her relive her worst memories.

Stuck in a dream that will not end Pamela sees Ash’s death once again. Reliving the cold horrible moments of an attempted rape by a monk, realizing that Ash knew it had happened but done nothing to save her, and finally watching her lover die in her arms. To wake Pamela from her horrible past Belus learns that she must have the blood from someone’s heart. Does he love her enough to give his life for hers?

Episode 16 “Tree and Long-Horned Beetle” was one of the more heart wrenching stories of the entire series. A small abused boy makes friends with a tree spirit and when the boy’s father almost kills him the tree spirit makes the ultimate sacrifice for the boy.

This volume of The Tarot Café is the best one so far. We’ve learned so much about Pamela along the way and the end of her story is coming. Nebiros, the man that the werewolf Aaron has been looking for, also makes a small appearance letting us know that he plays a much larger role in this game than we could ever realize. How it will end, who knows? I’m looking forward to finding out.

'Dark Lullaby' by Mayra Calvani

2007-11-29T22:50:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 159374907
Format: Paperback
Publisher: Whiskey Creek Press, LLC
Pub. Date: September 2007

Dark Lullaby is the kind of novel that you will want to read in one sitting. As the tension builds, as the characters fall into their own personal hells, you are compelled to keep reading.

When Gabriel Diaz meets a mysterious woman he shoves all thoughts of his ex-girlfriend Liz, a bohemian librarian, from his mind. Even though she happens to be sitting next to him when Kamilah introduces herself at a bar and invites herself into their conversation about good and evil. Liz seems to recognize that there is something odd about Kamilah but Gabriel is blinded.

Gabriel is an intelligent introspective man, he had a difficult childhood and is struggling to work out who he is. Soon Gabriel infatuated with Kamilah, her beauty and mind draw him to her. When Kamilah invites Gabriel to visit her in her homeland in Turkey. But Gabriel’s sister Elena, his twin and close friend, is waiting for him in Belgium where she is expecting a child. Gabriel had promised to be there for the birth but Kamilah’s invitation drives it from his mind.

Once he is away from everything familiar, deep in Kamilah’s territory, Gabriel becomes sick and loses his cell phone. All communication is cut with Liz, who is extremely worried about him and his sister Elena, who has become frantic with worry over her brother. With her due date coming closer and Gabriel still missing she begins to wonder if he too will disappoint her, just as everyone else in her life has.

Meanwhile Kamilah, beautiful and strange, is acting oddly around Gabriel. She always seems to be hot to the touch and she seems oddly fascinated by the nature of good and evil. When Gabriel begins to suspect that Kamilah is somehow making him sick with hallucinations he struggles to find a way to escape her. But it could be too late for himself as well as for his sisters unborn baby.

Part horror and thriller with a touch of romance Dark Lullaby is a quick read that will keep you glued to the pages. Thoughtful, entertaining, and chilling the characters and the exotic settings will sweep you away.

'Arm of Kannon' by Masakazu Yamaguchi

2007-11-27T13:02:00.001-08:00

ISBN: 1591828104
Format: Paperback, 200pp
Publisher: TOKYOPOP
Pub. Date: May 2004
Price: $9.99

While browsing my husband's manga collection I came across Arm of Kannon. Curious, I asked him a little about it but he only shrugged. So I sat down to read it and find out for myself.

Mao has just turned 16 and is about to start high school. He and his sister Maya live with their mom, their dad having mysteriously disappeared three years ago and they have not seen or heard anything since then. They’ve learned to live without him and the two siblings are very close. When the father shows up claiming to have found the mysterious Arm of Kannon, a religious object of mystical power, Mao is worried. As he should be.

There are a lot of people after this Arm of Kannon. An undercover organization that is breeding men with lizards wants it for the genetic mutations it inflicts on the wearer, among other as of yet non-specified reasons. And a secret temple has sent an expert and legendary swordsman to protect the siblings from the monster that their father has become under the Kannon’s influence.

Isurugi, the swordsman, doesn’t get there in time to save Moa. Instead Moa’s father gets to pass on the Arm of Kannon in a very uncomfortable way. Unsure whether or not he has been truly infected the undercover agency captures him and sticks him in a lab where they test him in some unconventional ways.

The rest of the story is pretty much a gore fest. The characters don’t really grab me and I have to admit that I’m not a big fan of horror anyway. But I have a pretty good feeling that if you decide not to read this one you won’t be missing out on much.

The art isn’t bad, not the best I’ve come across, but you get the point pretty well. Not to mention the monsters that punctuate the story are very well done indeed, I would even go so far as to say extra creepy. Yamaguchi handles the horror aspect of the illustrations in a way that dialogue is unimportant, he goes for the big gasp or at least the little grimace. Panty shots also frequently show up just in case you get tired of all the gore.

Arm of Kannon is not for the faint of heart, rated mature for a reason you will encounter everything from swear words and rape to bodies cut up and stuck in a fridge. Even though we already own the next three volumes I don’t think I will continue to read them, I’m not that desperate for something to read yet.

'The Tarot Café’ Vol. 4 by Sang-Sun Park

2007-11-26T13:15:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 1595328149
Format: Paperback, 184pp
Publisher: TOKYOPOP
Pub. Date: December 2005
Price: $9.99

The Tarot Café just gets better and better as it goes along. Dragons, fairies, werewolves, water spirits, and ghosts all reveal their stories and in doing so show us bits and pieces of Pamela’s past. This tarot reading café owner is the big draw for me. As the series has gone on I’ve just gotten more involved in her story and I can’t wait to see how it turns out.

In Episode 11 “A Butterfly in My Dreams” Pamela helps a brother and sister reconcile long after they have wronged each other. I really enjoy that each of the little episodes throw in a twist at the end, sometimes it’s a bit clichéd but it always somehow seems to work. This one is no exception, you have characters that are seemingly straight forward until the end. I guess I should learn to recognize this by now, since none of Pamela’s customers are never what they appear to be.

In Episode 12 the “Contract” we find out who Berial was and a bit of history about his legendary necklace. Berial was considered the prince of falsehood and deceit, a devil who held nothing sacred and his necklace was rumored to hold immense power. We once again dip into Pamela’s past, into her history and the recent death of her love Ash. When Pamela is accused of being a witch, just like her mother before her, Belus steps in to save her.

Belus, the Prince of Pandemonium, wants Berial’s necklace for himself and sees a way to get it through Pamela. Without Ash Pamela feels that life is not worth living and tries to end it several times only to learn that she cannot die. Belus however offers her a contract, in return for the complete necklace of Berial he will grant her death.

Belus also has more of a soft spot for Pamela than she might realize. Although he does claim that she isn’t his type he cares for her deeply despite the contract that has been forged between them. Something that the reincarnated or amnesia suffering, whatever it is, Ash has a problem with.

Episode 13, “Leanan Sidhe (One),” introduces us to a rock star and his muse. Sasha is a no name until he comes across a legend about a woman who can make you famous. When he finds her he realizes that there is price for fame and that he might not be willing to pay that price. But Pamela is approached not only by Sasha but also by the muse who is seeking redemption. The story for this one continues into the next volume.

Some of the artwork in this one is a little different than the first three volumes. The full page illustration depicting the tarot card at the first page of episode twelve is darker in tone, heavily shadowed instead of the delicate line work that has been showcased before. Just as lovely, only different and in the volume it is the only example of that style. There were also more full page characterizations in this one compared to volume three.

I’ve already picked up volumes five and six, I just can’t seem to stop myself and I have ear marked volume seven for purchase once it is released in 2008. The Tarot Café is a great series so far, with a little bit of everything, and I can’t wait to continue reading.

'The Tarot Café' Vol. 3 by Sang-Sun Park & Jung-Su Kim

2007-11-25T01:09:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 1595325573
Format: Paperback, 192pp
Publisher: TOKYOPOP
Pub. Date: September 2005
Price: $9.99

The Tarot Café continues in volume three of this seven part series. Pamela and Aaron, the werewolf with the painful past who now works at the café, are getting along well, even if he is a bit nosey. In the last volume, we were introduced to a character named Ash who wears a face out of Pamela’s past, a long dead love that is somehow tied into the fact that she cannot die herself.

In this volume, the relationship between Pamela and Belus, which has been hinted at as being something more, starts to come out into the light. Though they aren’t lovers and not exactly friends, we have yet to see what the exact circumstances are. We learn that Pamela must collect all the pieces of Berial’s necklace, though who or what that person is remains a mystery, as part of a contract between herself and Belus.

What this contract entails we haven’t learned yet beyond the fact that Pamela and Belus are tied to each other. Though Pamela cannot die, she can still be hurt and does feel pain. Belus can feel Pamela’s pain and tries to protect her as best he can. He has already come to her rescue several times, the last being from episode seven, “Witch Hunt,” when Ash and Pamela were abducted and almost killed.

Episode eight, “The Star of Jealousy,” dips into Pamela’s distant past. In the year 1529, Pamela met a King who fell in love with a young slave but let his jealous emotions destroy the one thing he cared for. This story relates how Pamela came to have one of the major pieces of Beria’s necklace, a beautiful blue stone that holds the reddish ting of jealousy.

Episode nine, “Lady of the Lake,” is the light hearted bit of volume three, as well as providing a little comic relief. While so far most of the stories in The Tarot Café have been bittersweet, this one actually has a happy ending. A broke collage student falls in love with a water spirit but becomes so wrapped up in giving her material things that he doesn’t realize all she really wants is his time.

In episode ten, “Dragon Heart,” we learn the more about Ash and Pamela’s love affair. Though this new Ash resembles the one from the past, and could very well be, he seems to be suffering from amnesia - though he does seem to know Pamela from somewhere and have plans of his own for her. He also knows Belus, though what their connection is remains to be seen.

When another face shows up out of Pamela’s past, she is stunned. Alecto was Ash’s best friend and for hundreds of years was convinced that Pamela had killed Ash. But when Alecto comes to take his revenge on Pamela and sees the current reincarnation of Ash, or whatever he is, Alecto changes his plans.

The art, as with the previous volumes, continues to be wonderful. Though this volume lacked a lot of the full-page carefully drawn characterizations that the first two held, it does feature a few. There is more going on with each of the characters than meets the eye, and the story is really starting to pick up. Pamela isn’t the only one with a dark past, and it’s obvious that Belus and Ash both have hidden agendas. How it all relates to Pamela and Aaron, who is still looking for Nebiros, only time will tell.

'Key to Conflict'

2007-11-24T22:40:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 0441015034
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 336pp
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
Pub. Date: May 2007
Price: $7.99

There is a reason people read reviews. One of the reasons is that hopefully you will not spend your hard earned cash on a book that will only disappoint you. Of course when you’re an impulse shopper, like me, and you see a cover that catches your eye sometimes you just have to bite the bullet.

I really, really wanted to like Key to Conflict. It’s got a great plot idea and a few characters that really grab your attention. Unfortunately the end result is something short of what you might expect. It’s clumsy and awkward in spots, with too much detail and development in which the author shows you a lot of things without letting it just unfold onto the page. There just was not enough conversation to keep the book going; Indeed, Gryphon would tell you that certain characters had talked, and this just got to be a little boring. I don’t want to be told what they said, I just want to read it, damnit.

Not to mention the fact that this is labeled fantasy… except that for just fantasy it sure does have a lot of sex going on. Or if not sex, then enough time spent inside Gillian’s head thinking about the hunky beautiful drop-dead-sexy males she finds herself surrounded by. They all want her too, she’s that perfect. I personally would have stuck this in the romance section, except that it wouldn’t really fit there either.

Dr. Gillian Key is a Marine Paramortal Psychologist. So she kicks your ass and then she’s going to ask you how you feel about it. It’s an unusual combination, and it almost works. She is assigned to a master vampire by the name of Alesksei and a charming ghost and while she is there for their mental health she is also supposed to unearth some clues about Dracula. Yes, the Dracula, who is the ultimate in bad guys and just so happens to be stirring up trouble again.

From there we learn that basically Dracula is trying to take over the world again and our brave and oh-so-sweet doctor has landed on the wrong side. By helping Alesksei, one of Dracula’s sworn enemies, Gillian has been made a target. But since part of her mission is to uncover information she’s in the perfect, if a bit tight, spot.

Soon Gillian has formed a relationship with Tanis, Alesksei’s even cuter brother and the dead but very sexy turquoise-eyed ghost she’s treating for shock over his untimely death hundreds of years ago. And Alesksei has a thing for her too, but there is that whole doctor-patient line that Gillian doesn’t want to cross… well… until later, at least.

The Dracula stuff never goes anywhere and nothing is resolved. There are hints of a second book with the open ending and I can only pray that if a sequel does show up it is less tell and more show. In the end I just started skipping pages, which I have to admit is not a good idea since there is so much information crammed onto each page to begin with.

But I couldn’t bring myself to go back and read it. So I just gave up, and I hate to admit it but — this particular Key to Conflict just might have to remain lost in the couch cushions.

'Suppli' Vol. 1 by Mari Okazaki

2007-11-23T09:20:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 1427803145
Format: Paperback, 192pp
Publisher: TOKYOPOP
Pub. Date: November 2007
Price: $9.99

If you think that manga is not for you, you’re wrong. Whatever age range, or whatever genre you enjoy be it fantasy, mystery, or romance there is a series out there for you. And speaking of romance I just found my new favorite series, Suppli by Mari Okazaki.

Minami is dedicated to her job working at an advertising agency and as a result her relationship with her boyfriend of seven years has suffered. He’s always there when she gets home and she expects him to be, taking their relationship for granted. But she’s unhappy, wondering why she can’t seem to get the words out to break up with him. But when he beats her to the punch she’s heartbroken.

Once the relationship is over and the boyfriend gone, Minami realizes that she has no friends and knows no one except her work colleagues. At 27 she is afraid that she could end up alone, the office spinster, spending her time sitting in front of the TV and talking to herself, something she seems to do a lot of anyway. So when some people from the office talk about going out she makes sure she gets invited too.

When Minami takes a break from Karaoke with the group Ishida, a younger co-worker, is waiting for her out in the hall. He is playful and kisses her but she doesn’t handle it well and later in the evening when she sees him reach for someone else’s hand she doesn’t think that he really likes her at all. She puts it behind her, thinking nothing else of it, although it is obvious that Ishida is smitten.

Then Minami meets Ogiwara, who was hired at the same time and in the same age. He’s not as playful as Ishida, more down to earth but he’s also got a ghost hanging over him. He has recently broken up with someone as well but he seems to be taking his break up a lot harder than Minami took hers. He likes her though and in the end he asks if she could just be a shoulder for him to lean on. She agrees, wanting to be there for him and hoping that a relationship could blossom.

There are some really sweet romantic moments here; the kind of things that just make your heart go pitter-patter. But it has some comedy too, so that over all you have a great balance between the drama and romance, which makes Suppli a lot like real life. Then the little bit of narration by Minami stuck here and there adds so much to the story, which gives it a very cinematic feel.

I really like Minami, her thoughts and actions are those of any woman, no matter the age; but since this is rated 18+ it will definitely appeal to the 20-somethings out there. I think that when you read this one you might see a bit more of yourself than you expect as well. We’ve all gone through similar situations and can identify with Minami as she juggles work and the possibility of starting a new relationship.

I’m really impressed with Suppli, the art is good and the Volume 2 is being released in July 2008 with volume 3 following up in March. There are six volumes but the release dates for the rest have not been set as of yet. Keep your eye on Tokyopop for the latest information though and keep your fingers crossed for Ishida, I like him best.

'The Road to Hell' by Jackie Kessler

2007-11-22T08:41:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 0821781030
Format: Paperback, 304pp
Publisher: Kensington Publishing Corporation
Pub. Date: November 2007
Price: $15.00

The Road to Hell is pretty in your face with the sexuality. In the first 20 pages you get premature ejaculation, bathroom masturbation, and dirty talk. Imagine, if that is what you get for your first taste, what else is in store? Yeah, I can hear your brain working through my computer.

Jesse, formally known as the demon succubus Jezebel, is a stripper. Something that is not that far removed from what she did as a demon seeing as how she seduced humans to claim their souls for hell. But all that is behind her. She is no longer that demon succubus but Jesse, the now human girl who loves her job stripping at Spice as much as she loves her New York City cop boyfriend, Paul.

Jesse just thought she left that all behind. When her best friend’s sister shows up, all that soft, comfy safety flies out the window. Megaera, Jesses’ one time best friend, until she left Jesse to die, is in trouble and being tortured. Jesse is asked to help her, save her from her fate because Jesse is the only demon to ever escape hell and live to tell the tale.

But Jesse isn’t sure she wants to. She likes her human life, she likes the relationship with Paul and doesn’t want any of that to change; which of course it would if she went back to hell to save her betrayer of a best friend. But deep down Jesse is still the succubus she once was, sure she has a soul and a human body, but you can’t change 4,000 years of living one way for another over night.

When Paul gets pulled into the mess Jesse knows what she has to do. Along the way we meet a ton of fun characters. Angel, who just happens to be a real angel, is great and Jesse has a lot of fun corrupting little Miss Perfect.

The Road to Hell is being labeled a paranormal romance. It’s not. Sure this is paranormal but this isn’t exactly a romance. Jesse, though she does love Paul, doesn’t spend a lot of time with him in this. In the end he just spends too much time off stage to be a love interest or a character that I care about. Not to mention that though she is dedicated to her relationship it doesn’t stop her from letting other questionable things happen; which just flies in the face of the romance format.

Not that I mind something that’s a bit unconventional, which The Road to Hell certainly is. You’ve got strippers, demons, and a ton of in your face action of all kinds. Jesse is a unique voice and I’m sure that she will have her own fan base in no time. So if you are looking for something a bit kinky, a little dirty and a ton of fun look no farther than The Road to Hell.

'Angel Sanctuary' Vol. 1 by Kaori Yuki

2007-11-21T17:11:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 1591162459
Format: Paperback, 198pp
Publisher: VIZ Media LLC
Pub. Date: April 2004
Price: $9.95

I picked up Angel Sanctuary because it’s a classic. There are 20 volumes in all, as well as a three-episode OVA series that ties into the manga. It was first serialized in a Japanese magazine but was then released in volume form starting in 1995 and has been in print since. And I have to say that it holds up to time well; the story still has an edge and freshness to it that I haven’t found in a lot of the older manga and anime.

But it is impossible to deny that the story line is confusing. There is so much going on, so many characters, besides who they were in another life, are introduced in the first volume that you would have to read the entire series before you understood how they all fit together. The first volume simply presents you with a few faces and lays the ground work for the long tale that follows.

At first Setsuna Mudo seems like your basic troubled high school guy; coming from a broken home he doesn’t have it easy. When we are first introduced to him he is getting his butt kicked, but besides that he doesn’t seem like he would be anyone special. Well, until we find out that he is the reincarnation of the female Organic Angel Alexiel. And oh yeah, he’s deeply in love with his sister Sara. But the blurb on the back warns you that Setsuna “harbors feelings for his sister that can only be described as incestuous” so that part isn’t a surprise.

We also find out that teenagers all across the city are dying in a mysteriously gruesome way. At the scenes a floppy disc (see I told you this was old school) called Angel Sanctuary is found and when Sara’s best friend Ruri is given one by a foreign priest on the street you know trouble is coming. Along the way Ruri meets Sara’s brother Setsuna and develops a crush on him. When Ruri asks Sara to set her up with her brother Sara freaks out a little and the reader begins to realize that Setsuna isn’t alone in how he feels.

Ruri starts to play the game on the disc given to her by the odd priest and finds out that the game is an Angel. Eventually the Angel takes over Ruri’s body and she becomes the home of the male Inorganic Angel Rosiel, the twin of Alexiel. The two have a bitter past and Rosiel is determined to kill his twin.

Heaven and Hell, Angels and Demons, and humanity are at stake as the characters line up and take sides. Setsuna doesn’t realize yet that he is Alexiel, held to his human form because of his love for Sara, and this puts him a few tight spots as Rosiel gains a human body and starts building her army.

I’m not sure that I will continue reading Angel Sanctuary right away. The story is good, lots of twists and turns but all the gender-bending got to be a little much. I don’t mind some of that but when no one is who they say they are it gets to be a little confusing. But there's no doubt Angel Sanctuary is a classic and I know my curiosity will get the better of me. It’s only a matter of time before I pick up volume two.

'Bride of the Water God' Vol. 1 by Mi-Kyung Yun

2007-11-20T17:16:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 1593078498
Format: Paperback, 184pp
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Pub. Date: October 2007
Price: $9.95

Bride of the Water God is manhwa, different from the Japanese manga since it comes from Korea and there are differences in the character designs and un-translated sound effects. Manhwa is also read from left to right, unlike the Japanese and Chinese counterparts, which makes it more accessible to western culture. Bride of the Water God is a superb example of this style of graphic novel and is sure to gain fans and popularity as the series continues.

Bride of the Water God is the tale of Soah, a beautiful young woman who is sacrificed by her village to the Water God Habaek. Convinced that the gift of a beautiful woman will save their village from drought, they send her out alone to face what is believed to be a horrible monster. But the last thing Soah expects is to be welcomed to the land of Suguk by Habaek the Water God, who happens to be a child.

Soah is welcomed into Habaek's household as his bride, and she spends a lot of her time wandering around the palace. She meets several of the other Gods who are living there, a strange collection of beautiful and slightly eccentric characters that I'm sure will be fun to get to know as the series continues.

Among the people living in the palace is Huye, a man that Soah first mistakes for the Water God. When Soah is attacked by a che, a monster that is similar to a tiger but has the tail of an ox and barks like a dog, Huye is there to save her. Soah hurts her ankle in the process, and Huye carries her back to the palace to the annoyance of Habaek.

Habaek, who can be a bit temperamental, just happens to be cursed. During the day he is the child that Soah knows, but at night he reverts to his adult self. While the rest of the inhabitants of the palace know, no one has filled Soah on this little secret. When she comes face to face with a grown Habaek, she has no idea who he is. Habaek, in response, panics and tells her that he is Habaek's cousin, Mui.

It gets a little tangled from there and even worse once Habaek's mother Seowangmo, the Goddess of Punishment and Torture among other things, shows up to inspect Habaek's new bride. We find out that Soah isn't the first of his human brides, but nothing is known of his previous wives or where they have gone.

Yun's artwork is spectacular and amazingly detailed, especially the clothing and the kingdom of Suguk. I was particularly enchanted by the first few pages, which are done in color; delicate and other worldly, they give such a romantic feel and make the perfect introduction for the black and white drawings that follow. Bride of the Water God Volume Two is being released in February of 2008, so you don't have long to wait for the continuing story. I can't even begin to tell you how much I'm looking forward to it.

'The Tarot Cafe' Vol. 2 by Sang-Sun Park

2007-11-19T01:52:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 1595325565
Format: Paperback, 192pp
Publisher: TOKYOPOP
Pub. Date: June 2005
Price: $9.99

The second volume of The Tarot Café was just as hard to put down as the first. But then again once you start reading why would you want to? In this volume we finish the story of the Jester and the Alchemist which was started in volume one, learn more about Pamela and her mysterious past, and we meet a werewolf.

Episode five, “A Heartless Princess, an Alchemist, and a Jester (Part 2),” continues from volume one and finishes the tale of the evil Princess, the Alchemist who kidnapped her hoping for love, and the Jester doll that was made to please her. When the Alchemist finally realizes how truly horrible the Princess is he must make a choice between his creation and her evil.

In Episode six, “The Werewolf Boy,” we meet Aaron, a werewolf with a painful past. When his alcoholic father sells him to a mysterious man by the name of Nebiros, Aaron for the first time is given everything he wants. But Aaron feels trapped, and though he has promised not to betray Nebiros by leaving the safety of the castle he does so at the first chance available. When Aaron realizes his mistake it is too late. Cursed to wander the earth as a werewolf he seeks out Pamela, hoping that she will be able to help him.

This story is particularly interesting because we learn something crucial about Pamela, a hint of things to come, at least. Aaron makes it to the Tarot Café but in werewolf form. He attacks Pamela, unaware of his actions, and bites her on the neck. But the bite doesn’t kill or turn Pamela into a monster. Instead, the wound heals and we learn that Pamela is much more than just human.

And in Episode seven, “The Witch Hunt,” we learn a lot about Pamela’s past, things that were only hinted at in the first volume. When a man stumbles into her café wearing a face straight out of her past, it stirs all kinds of memories. We learn about Pamela’s mother as well as Pamela’s real age. Not to mention a little bit about Belus, the man who spends a lot of his time hanging out at the café, who also has connections to Nebiros and Aaron. Though the true meaning of those connections are yet to be revealed.

As in the first volume, Park’s artwork is nothing short of perfection. Beautiful and detailed, the story is told in elegant lines that simply demands attention — and once again you can tell that Park has a fascination with fairy-tales. I’m really enjoying The Tarot Café and I can’t wait to pick up the next volume.

'Ice Storm' by Anne Stuart

2007-11-18T23:43:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 0778325008
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 352pp
Publisher: Mira
Pub. Date: November 2007
Price: $6.99

I am now a life long fan of Anne Stuart. After reading Ice Storm I can’t do anything else besides convert, there is just no use fighting it. You might find this a little extreme but I promise you it isn’t. And how can I even think of becoming a fan with just one book? Easily and you better believe I’m going to the bookstore to stock up on the rest of her titles in the Ice series.

Isobel Lambert is a cold-blooded professional working for a covert organization called The Committee based out of London. They have highly trained assassins stationed across the globe, cold blooded men and women all with Isobel at their head. Nicknamed the Ice Queen, or Irion Maiden, there is much more to Isobel than meets the eye.

Serafin the Butcher is the most dangerous man in the world. The Committee has already tried and failed to have him eliminated once. But when his name comes up a second time it isn’t for termination. Serafin has brokered a deal with the Committee, in exchange for his personal safety he is willing to trade information about the third world countries he’s been hiding out and causing havoc in.

Isobel, the head of the Committee, is the only operative able to go. Not to mention that Serafin asked for her personally. Her mission is to extricate him from North Africa and get him safely to England where he can be debriefed and then given a new identity. A simple job to Isobel’s mind until she discovers that Serafin the Butcher is really a man named Killian, a man from her past that she thought she had killed years ago.

With the Committee falling apart around her ears and Killian stirring all kinds of feelings she thought she could control Isobel is coming to the end of her tether. Her past and present collide putting her in the difficult position of feeling emotion once again while trying to keep from falling apart. Plus you get great sex scenes and a body count, how awesome is that?

Stuart’s characters are wonderful. I could gush at you for pages about how well she wrote Isobel and Killian, not to mention the rest of the characters who have their own titles to explore. I’m in love and I just can’t help myself. But I won’t subject you to such mushy fan-ism, what I will say is that I have rarely come across such complex and three dimensional characters. The fact that they are some of the worlds deadliest assassins helps though, too.

Ice Storm was great. No, it was nothing short of brilliantly fantastic. I literally could not put this one down and took an extra long lunch just so I could finish it. If you haven’t read Anne Stuart start now. But if you beat me to the bookstore be sure to leave a few for me.

'The Innocent Mage' by Karen Miller

2007-11-17T09:00:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 0316067806
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 642pp
Publisher: Orbit
Pub. Date: September 2007
Price: $6.99

I don’t read a lot of epic fantasy; I’m intimidated by the large page count and tiny words. Not to say that I haven’t read anything along these lines but when it comes to this genre I tend to prefer Tolkien. But I’d been reading for weeks how good The Innocent Mage was, Karen Miller’s first in her Kingmaker, Kingbreaker duo, and I just had to see what all the fuss was about.

The characters are what really make this book readable. Asher, Matt, Danthe, Prince Gar and the way they all interact is fantastic. I read the first 200 pages of the book in one sitting and just could not put it down.

We first meet Asher, our hero, as he is leaving behind his small fishing village. He’s the youngest of the family and stands to inherit the smallest piece of the family business so he decides to seek his fortune in the city. I know this is a pretty typical beginning, it’s nothing you haven’t read before, but Asher jumps off the page and is larger than life. He is a fantastically real character and makes the cliché work.

Once in the city Asher stops Prince Gar’s horse from bolting. Asher is blunt and upfront and doesn’t particularly care either way for royalty. Because of his honesty, Prince Gar offers him a job working in the Prince’s stables which Asher accepts. This is where he meets Matt and Danthe, two members of a secret Olken circle who live their lives by an ancient prophecy dedicated to saving the world. Everything seems to be going well for Asher; he has a good job and has made friends, except that we know otherwise.

There are two races of people living in the kingdom of Lur, Doranen and Olken. The Doranen race is able to perform magic, the royalty is Doranen and all the higher offices are held by them. The Olken’s are considered the lower race, they keep the harder jobs and while they hold office it is still lower than the Doranen. The Doranen are very protective of their magic as well and it is believed that no Olken has the talent to work the magics that the Doranen’s do.

So with this powder keg of potential unrest waiting to blow we learn that Asher is none other than the Innocent Mage, the very same mage that prophecy has said would come and save the world. Danthe has been waiting for a very long time and with Asher’s coming she knows it signifies the end times. But from what is Asher meant to save the world from and why must he be kept innocent about his potential magic?

The Innocent Mage is full of vibrant characters and a decent plot. Ms. Miller effortlessly weaves each character’s perspective into the story, each voice unique and solid. You spend a lot of time getting to know the players and that only serves to make them more life like. The story continues with The Awakened Mage, the final installment in Asher’s tale. Which you just have to read once you’ve finished this one because of the cliff hanger ending.

'Legends of the Dark Crystal - The Garthim Wars' by Barbara Randall Kesel Illustrated by Heidi Arnhold & Max Kim

2007-11-16T01:15:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 1598167014
Format: Paperback, 192pp
Publisher: TOKYOPOP
Pub. Date: November 2007
Price: $9.99

Legends of the Dark Crystal – The Garthim Wars takes place 100 years before Jim Henson’s classic film The Dark Crystal and gives the reader a peek into the history leading up to the healing of the dark crystal by the Gelflings Jen and Kira.

But this is before the crystal was healed and the Gelflings almost extinct. Garthim still hunt the nonviolent Gelflings for the evil Skeksis. The captured Gelflings are taken to the Crystal Palace were they are drained of their essence which the Skeksis drink for immortality.

Lahr, a peaceful shepherd, is away from his village when it is raided by a large group of Garthim. He comes back to find everyone gone and is attacked by a lingering Garthim. Lahr successfully fights the monster off, an unheard of feat. Determined to warn the other Gelfling villages Lahr leaves behind the ruins of his past.

Neffi’s village was attacked as well and when she stumbles across Lahr’s path they decided to go on together. Soon the two heart-sore Gelflings have reached the next village. Lahr warns the elders of what is coming but the village is split in its decision to stay and fight or flee. The Gelflings are a peaceful nonviolent race and the idea of fighting and war are completely alien to them.

The art by Heidi Arnhold and Max Kim is great, very detailed and there is a lot to look at in each panel. They did a good job of sticking to the ideas of Brian Froud, who did the original artwork and designs for the movie, while making it their own. There is also a guest art gallery at the back with drawings from 16 other artists.

The gentle Mystics don’t play a huge role in the manga though the evil Skeksis make an appearance and are as creepy as ever. I really liked the idea that this story is history, set 100 years before the story we are so familiar with, and that it isn’t bogged down with cameo appearances. Legends of the Dark Crystal is new and fresh while still feeling slightly familiar. It’s perfect if you’re a fan of The Dark Crystal or are just looking for a solidly drawn fantasy.

2007-11-15T07:36:00.000-08:00

Have you heard of GoodReads? It's a free site where you can connect with other readers. You can add and review books you are currently reading, going to read, or have already read. It's a great way to share what you love with others or find something new. You start by just searching for your books, adding them to your catalogue where you can organize them on shelves. They also give you little widgets to put on your blog. And best of all there is no limit to the number of books you can add. It's all free. Check out GoodReads, and if you do let me know so I can add you as a friend.

2007-11-14T08:04:00.000-08:00

Have you heard the rumors of the Harry Potter prequel? If not check out the article over at Blogcritics and let me know what you think.

There is also a new Beyond Bounds full of new releases and upcoming titles.

'Upon the Midnight Clear' by Sherrilyn Kenyon

2007-11-13T01:05:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 0312947054
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 288pp
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Pub. Date: October 2007
Price: $6.99

Upon the Midnight Clear is the first novel I’ve read of Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Dream-Hunter series. I have to admit that I was expecting something a bit more and reading the reviews on Amazon I’m not the only one. I had really been looking forward to this one too, thanks to the hunky guy on the cover.

Aiden is a famous Hollywood actor who has had his faith in humanity ripped to shreds. Kenyon drops all kinds of references throughout the novel, including one to the movie 300, which gets a little tiring after awhile. Aiden has a psycho brother, Donnie, who has let his jealousy turn him into a monster bent on destroying everything Aiden has worked so hard to gain.

Leta is a dream goddess who has battled the god of Pain in the past and has suffered great losses. Leta, better than anyone, understands the pain that others inflict on those they love. But stripped of all emotion she refuses to concentrate on anything but revenge for past wounds.

When Donnie summons the god of Pain to kill Aiden, Leta steps in. Determined that no more innocents will be harmed and thirsty for revenge she plans to sacrifice herself if she must. What she doesn’t count on are the feelings that arise for Aiden. Broken and bitter Aiden is determined not to let Leta affect him but the more he is around her the more he can’t help but hope that not everyone hurts those they love.

I was expecting something with a bit more grit and what I got was a Christmas romance dressed up with Greek Gods. Not only did I get this sappy, makes you grimace while you read story, but I got the sappy cookie-cutter happy ending as well. Mind if I ruin it for you? Sure you don’t. They get married and have a baby. Gasp! Socking, I know.

Upon the Midnight Clear wasn’t bad, it just wasn’t what I had expected. Sherrilyn Kenyon is still one of my favorite romance authors and I will continue to read her stories, I have Dark Side of the Moon in my to-be-read stack right now and I can’t wait to get to it. Just when you pick this one up expect a light hearted read that will only take a few hours tops.

'A Gathering of Gargoyles' by Meredith Ann Pierce

2007-11-12T08:01:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 0316067253
Format: Paperback, 304pp
Publisher: Little Brown Bks Young Readers
Pub. Date: October 2007
Price: $7.99

A Gathering of Gargoyles was first published in 1984 and is the second book in Meredith Anne Pierce’s Darkangel Trilogy. This series just gets better as it goes along and I have to admit that I enjoyed the second book more than the first.

A Gathering of Gargoyles picks up where The Darkangel left off. Aeriel has broken the spell that Irrylath was under and he is no longer a Darkangel. However the White Witch isn’t giving up on Irrylath that easily and she haunts his dreams, helping to create the distance that separates the two. Though they were married and Aeriel loves him dearly, Irrylath wants nothing to do with her.

When Aeriel learns that her part of the battle against the White Witch has not ended, and realizing that Irrylath does not share her feelings, she leaves the haven of Isternes and travels out into the wide world. Traveling across a sea made of dust she sees many strange wonders; dust whales and shrimp, veins of clear blue colored sand, and eventually islands inhabited by people the likes of which she has never before seen.

Aeriel has learned from the Darkangel’s brides, who have passed on and become stars, that the White Witch is still searching for a way to gain control of the world. Her sons, the vampires known as the Darkangels, still roam the world spreading sickness and death. Aeriel must find the guardians of the world, awaken them and gather them to fight the White Witch before it is too late.

The guardians now are few and far between thanks to the Darkangels; they have been chased off or killed, with only their memories left in the minds of the people. But Aeriel is determined to find them. When the White Witch learns that Aeriel is once again moving out in the world she sends her minions after the girl.

In her adventures Aeriel crosses paths with all kinds of creatures and people. A light house keeper that is more than what he seems, thieves and highwaymen, a nameless man, and the gargoyles that she had come to love and eventually released from the Darkangel’s tower fortress. They will all help or hinder Aeriel in her journey, lighten her load or throw burdens on her back as she does everything she can so save the world she knows.

A Gathering of Gargoyles will not disappoint readers and will only leave you waiting breathlessly for the third and final book, The Pearl of the Soul of the World which will be out in February of 2008. Of course like I’ve said before if you can’t wait for the new covers there is always your local used bookstore. But good luck finding a copy, these are the kinds of books that once bought you never give up.

'The Tarot Cafe' Vol. 1 by Sang-Sun Park

2007-11-11T10:52:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 1595325557
Format: Paperback, 192pp
Publisher: TOKYOPOP
Pub. Date: March 2005
Price: $9.99

I picked up the first volume of The Tarot Café on a whim. I’d read a little bit about the series online and seen nothing but rave reviews. When I saw it on the shelf I thought, why not? I’m so glad that I did, I feel as if I’ve stumbled into really fantastic with Tarot Café.

Pamela is a clairvoyant and the owner of The Tarot Café where she caters to a supernatural clientele. Eventually they all come to Pamela to know what their futures will hold. A wish-fulfilling cat, vampire, fairy, and an alchemist people the stories of this volume. Pamela reads their pasts, presents, and their possible futures while reserving judgment.

In episode 1 ‘A Wish-Fulfilling Cat’ we met a cat who is able to fulfill the wishes of his mistress. This one was particularly heart wrenching as you learn that the cat has fallen in love with his human mistress only to have all in love with another.

With Episode 2 ‘Eternal Beauty’ we met a vampire who is cursed to repeat his mistakes over and over. Doomed to kill the one he loves and live with the burden he fights to break free of the vicious cycle. He comes to Pamela for help already knowing the choice he has made in his heart.

Episode 3 ‘A Fairy’ was the comic relief of the collection. To break a curse a fairy trapped in the body of a small girl must find someone who needs help. The fairy has to help this person with all her heart and only then will the curse be broken. But when everything seems to go wrong will the Fairy ever break the curse and marry her one true love?

Episode 4 (part 1) ‘A Heartless Princess, an Alchemist, and a Jester’ When an Alchemist wishes to marry a heartless Princess her one condition to accepting him is that he makes her smile. The Alchemist tries everything he can think of and eventually builds her a Jester. The Jester makes the Princess smile but soon she has moved on to other amusements at the Jester’s expense. When the Alchemist learns of the Princess’ cruelty he must make a choice between her and his doll. This is one is unfinished, an incentive as if you needed one, to pick up The Tarot Café volume two in which the episode is finished.

Sang-Sun Park’s artwork is stunning. Some of the most beautiful artwork of any manga I’ve seen, detailed and just gorgeous I would buy The Tarot Café based on artwork alone. The fact that the story lines are just as good as the art work is a bonus. Each episode has the feeling of a fairy tale with Pamela’s reality sandwiched between the stories but we don’t learn too much about our main character.

The Tarot Café has a little bit of everything. Romance, horror, and a ton of mystery. This is a great start to the series and I can understand why everyone seems to enjoy it so much. I’m looking forward to discovering Pamela’s dark past, something which is only hinted at in the first volume, and getting to know her future customers.

'Jim Henson's Return to Labyrinth' Vol. 1 by Jake T. Forbes with art by Chris Lie

2007-11-10T03:47:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 1598167251
Format: Paperback, 192pp
Publisher: TOKYOPOP
Pub. Date: August 2006
Price: $9.99

I loved Labyrinth - the movie that is. What wasn’t to love? David Bowie singing and wearing really, really tight pants. Not to mention the adventure, danger, and love. Labyrinth had it all, and I watched it so often that the tape wore out. When it came out on DVD I rushed out and bought a copy, and it’s never far from my DVD player. A few years ago, Hot Topic, a clothing store, had a whole line of Labyrinth themed clothes and accessories. I had my fair share of those, too.

So when I first saw Jim Henson’s Return to Labyrinth in the manga section a year ago, I was intrigued. I had loved the movie and was disappointed that it hadn’t been based off a book that I could devour and love. But I held off buying the manga until I could see what other people thought of it. At ten bucks a pop, for less than an hour of reading pleasure, that’s just a lot of cash to put down.

Return to Labyrinth picks up with Toby, Sarah’s now teenage brother, and Jareth the Goblin King. Toby is your typical teenager, except that whatever he wishes for seems to always happen. Of course, we know that Jareth is behind that, just as he was behind Sarah’s wish for her baby brother to disappear, and when Toby finds out, he isn’t too happy about it. Irritated with Toby’s reaction, Jareth seemingly steps out of the picture and leaves Toby to his normal life.

When Toby’s homework is stolen by a goblin who disappears into the back of his closet, Toby thinks nothing of following him through the small door. Of course, this door leads him to the Labyrinth and the Goblin City. Toby quickly picks up friends and sets out across the Labyrinth in search of his missing homework.

Along the way, we find out that Toby is being chased by rivals of Jareth’s, two sets of people determined to rule the Goblin City once Jareth steps down. Toby has somehow become mixed up in the mess. We have to ask ourselves: Why is Toby really there? What is Jareth up to? And do we really care?

The artwork inside the manga is done by Chris Lie, while the cover art is done by Kouyu Shurei. The cover art work is superior, more beautiful and detailed than what you find inside the book once you open it. To an extent, this is misleading, and I was disappointed that the artwork inside wasn’t what the cover showed. But Chris Lie is still a talented artist, and, as the story moved forward, I forgot my disappointment.

Return to Labyrinth Volume Two was published this month, over a year after the first volume hit shelves. And I'm glad that I waited to read them until the second one came out because this first volume leaves you with a cliff hanger ending. Overall, Volume One is fair. I’m a bit disappointed that it was so… well, typical. There wasn’t anything new or exciting to be found and jump start the imagination. The few cameos of characters from the movie felt stilted and awkward, while the rest of it just felt like your basic teen fluff, which has been done better. I'll keep reading in the hope that it gets better.

'Charlie All Night' by Jennifer Crusie

2007-11-07T15:07:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 077832107X
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 256pp
Publisher: Mira
Price: $5.99

I picked Charlie All Night up in a used bookstore for cheap. I just found myself unable to say no and I’m so glad that I lack self control, otherwise I would have missed out on this wonderful lighthearted romp.

When radio producer Allie McGuffey gets demoted from her prime time spot and moved to the graveyard shift it seems as if her career and life are over. It doesn’t help that the talent for the radio spot she had been producing happens to now be an ex-boyfriend and the woman moving into her old job his new girlfriend.

When Mark, handsome but too full of himself, tries to make nice with Allie after ruining her job, Allie does the only thing a girl can do. She picks up a random guy in a bar hoping that Mark will get the picture and leave. But the random guy Allie latches onto just happens to be the new graveyard shift talent she will be producing.

There is more than meets the eye with Charlie. As far as the station is concerned he’s temporary, a fill in until someone else comes along. But he isn’t there just to fill the airwaves; Charlie is also there investigating an anonymous letter sent to the station owner. But before he can get down to that he’s got to learn how to work the control panel and get a show going. All he has to do is lay low and keep his ears open. Allie has other plans however.

As Allie and Charlie’s relationship heats up she is also bound and determined to make him a star. So what starts out as a below the radar late night radio show soon becomes a political mine field as Charlie unearths one secret after another. Along the way there are fantastic one-liners, witty dialogue, fun characters and a happy ending. What more could you ask for?

Charlie All Night is just plain frothy fun. You aren’t going to make any life choices here or face something deep down inside. What you will do is escape for a little while into a funny, slightly wacky romance that will make you smile. Everyone could use a little Charlie.

Stephenie Meyer's Latest due out 2008

2007-11-06T09:37:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 0316068047
Format: Hardcover, 640pp
Publisher: Little, Brown & Company
Pub. Date: May 06, 2008
Price: $25.99

Synopsis:

The author of the Twilight series of # 1 bestsellers delivers her brilliant first novel for adults: a gripping story of love and betrayal in a future with the fate of humanity at stake.

Melanie Stryder refuses to fade away. The earth has been invaded by a species that take over the minds of their human hosts while leaving their bodies intact, and most of humanity has succumbed.

Wanderer, the invading "soul" who has been given Melanie's body, knew about the challenges of living inside a human: the overwhelming emotions, the too vivid memories. But there was one difficulty Wanderer didn't expect: the former tenant of her body refusing to relinquish possession of her mind.

Melanie fills Wanderer's thoughts with visions of the man Melanie loves-Jared, a human who still lives in hiding. Unable to separate herself from her body's desires, Wanderer yearns for a man she's never met. As outside forces make Wanderer and Melanie unwilling allies, they set off to search for the man they both love.

Featuring what may be the first love triangle involving only two bodies, THE HOST is a riveting and unforgettable novel that will bring a vast new readership to one of the most compelling writers of our time.

'Erec Rex: The Dragon Eye' by Kaza Kingsley

2007-11-05T07:05:00.000-08:00

ISBN: 0978655567
Format: Hardcover, 360pp
Publisher: Firelight Press, Inc.
Price: $17.99

In the world of young adult fiction there are a lot of reading choices you could make. There is something for everyone out there and one of the books we should all be reading is Erec Rex: The Dragon’s Eye, Kaza Kingsley’s first novel in a new series about an adventurous 12 year old with a glass eye and magical cloudy visions.

Erec Rex is not your average kid, having grown up in a home where slightly odd household items are the norm. Such as an alarm clock that will jump on you if you don’t wake up. But waking up one morning to find a strange babysitter watching over him and his several brothers and sisters and no idea where his mom is doesn’t sit well. When Erec has one of his cloudy visions, a vision that lets him know she could be in trouble, he rushes out to her rescue.

Erec’s vision leads him through a magical door in the sidewalk and down into another world. Bethany, a girl who helped Erec find the door in the first place, goes with him and soon the two are fast friends. Underneath New York a whole different city is bustling and moving along. Strange shops selling silver garments line the street, men and women fly overhead, and doors keep popping in and out of existence.

Unsure of what to do or where to go, Erec and Bethany follow the crowd and end up entering a contest to be the next kings and queens of this strange magical country. Erec discovers where his mom has disappeared to but is unable to help her right away. But since Erec and Bethany are both entered in the contest they decide they might as well stay and try to win. But one bad thing after another is slowing the contests down and it’s only a matter of time before someone gets hurt.

There are a ton of mysteries to solve along the way. Who is Erec Rex really? Why was his mom kidnapped and taken to this strange world? Who is behind the mischief in the contests? What do they want?

Great characters people this story and the small touches like a dancing coat rack or a pair of glasses that let you see the person you miss most are icing on the cake. Not to mention the magical remote controls — who wouldn’t want one of those? Also the vivid descriptions of the world are fantastic. Your imagination is given free rein to enjoy all the magical, wacky, wonderful creatures, people, and devices that roam through Ms. Kingsley’s story.

The Dragon’s Eye is a great introduction to a whole new world. This would be a good book to curl up with your little one and read to them or read first yourself and pass it on. The action is constant and just keeps you turning pages as you wonder what could happen next. Erec’s adventures continue with Erec Rex: The Monsters of Otherness, and I can’t wait to get started.

'Moongazer' by Marianne Mancusi

2007-11-03T17:18:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0505527251
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 355pp
Publisher: Dorchester Publishing Company, Incorporated
Pub. Date: July 2007
Price: $6.99

I have to admit that I picked up Moongazer on it’s cover alone. Thanks to an anime addicted husband I watch a ton of it and the idea of a romance novel with that kind of twist appealed to me. Moongazer is part of Shomi, Dorchester’s line of romance novels that launched last July, and are written and marketed with anime feel.

Skye Brown is a computer game designer working on the release of a new game that is supposed to be even bigger than World of Warcraft. (insert gasp here) Skye is dedicated to her work and loves her job but lately she just can’t seem to get any sleep. Whenever she does finally fall asleep she has these horrible nightmares in which she is someone else.

When Skye’s world finally falls apart around her and she wakes up in a post apocalyptic world she can’t decide if she is dreaming. But she does the only thing she can do, she calls a number written on the palm of her hand. Dawn, a handsome man who seems to know her, comes to her rescue. Skye learns in the process that everyone believes she is Mariah Quinn, a women who fought against something known as Moongazing. Mariah was a revolutionary who lead a group of people called the Eclipsers and Dawn just happened to be her right hand man.

100 years in the Earth’s future the super powers of the world have destroyed everything with a nuclear war. People are now living underground and depending on their station in life and wealth they live in a richer or poorer level. Moongazing was developed by the government because the underground cities were becoming crowded. Moongazing puts your body in a kind of hibernation while your brain goes to live somewhere else, in this case an Earth before it was destroyed. Moongazing however isn’t all it’s cracked up to be since it is addictive and can eventually kill you.

While Skye believes she is not this Mariah woman they all think she is the bad guys are going to try to kill her anyway. Duske a handsome though pervy guy ends up kidnapping her right out from under Dawn. Eventually though she is rescued and starts to realize that maybe there is some truth to all these wild claims that she is Mariah.

Even though the idea is a bit clichéd I loved that the good guy’s name was Dawn and the villain’s was Duske; it brought into play that whole dark vs. light thing. The name Dawn however kept invoking a picture of a girl I went to school with when I was in elementary instead of the big hulking beautiful man that the character was described as.

Skye/ Mariah’s internal dialogue was repetitive and after awhile became annoying. The constant questions, the statements that were repeated made me wonder if the book hadn’t been through the editing process a final time. I guess it just must be the author’s style and after looking at the reviews on Amazon it must work for some people, it just didn’t work for me.

Over all Moongazer was fair. The idea is a good one but it felt as if it hadn’t been fully realized or that too much of it was based off something else. The Matrix kept coming to mind as I read and I couldn’t help but feel that they had done it better. But I’m not going to give up on Shomi, with a new line up of titles set to be released in 2008 and two more that were released a few months ago, I’m sure I will find something to love.

'Servant: The Awakening' by L.L. Foster

2007-11-01T10:03:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0425218740
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 304pp
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
Pub. Date: October 2007
Price: $7.99

Servant: The Awakening is a new paranormal series by L.L. Foster or Lori Foster the author of more than 60 novels that have been on the New York Times Bestseller list. Maybe she thought the initials would help ease her into the paranormal market, a market that she had not until now written in. But whether it’s L.L. Foster or Lori Foster The Awakening is great. Plus it tells you right in the back of the book that it’s a pseudonym so it’s not like it’s a big secret.

Gabrielle Cody is unlike any other character I’ve read. Innocent, deadly, sheltered and yet so aware of the evil that the world contains it makes your heart ache. Gaby has lived a tough life, shoved from foster home to foster home, always on the edges of humanity she has been shunned because of her special gift. A gift that God has bestowed upon her to eliminate evil.

On her 21st birthday Gaby receives a call, a pain so intense she is able to focus on nothing else, and she rushes out to find and destroy the evil. Tall, thin, and wielding a huge knife she is more than able to defend herself even if she does look like nothing more than skin and bone. On the way to answer the call she bumps into Luther Cross a detective out wandering the mean streets of this unspecified city. He is immediately drawn to her but Gaby knows that there is no room in her life for friends or lovers.

When one of the bodies that Gaby dispatched is found by Luther he becomes suspicious of her and enlists her friend and landlord Morty to keep an eye on her. But no matter how antisocial Gaby is she can’t seem to shake the persistent detective who is interested in her for more than one reason. But Luther isn’t the only one watching Gaby; an evil so intense it hurts is trailing her as well. Never close enough for her to get a fix on, running away before she can confront it, but always there lingering at the edges Gaby knows it’s only a matter of time before she must face it.

This is completely different from any of the paranormal fiction you are going to find out there right now. God, and to an extent religion, are a big part of the story and the main character. Gaby is this powerful woman able to defeat the evil on earth because of God and she knows this. Also Gaby turns her holy adventures into graphic novels that are then published under a false name and have a huge underground following. I have a feeling that later in the series this idea will really come into play.

Along with all the serious slayer stuff there are a few funny moments. Gabby, having lived a life of deprivation dedicated to her calling, is totally unaware about sex. With no TV or radio to fill in her lack of education she corners Luther into filling her in on the fine details. While nothing too steamy happens beyond a few kisses the dialogue is sure to bring out a smile or two.

Servant: The Awakening is short and the pages just fly by; this was another one that I found myself glued to , unable to set it down, and reading over my lunch break. Better yet the story continues with Servant: The Acceptance which as of yet has no set release date besides the caption at the back of the book which reads ‘coming soon’ but for me it can’t be soon enough.

Beyond Bounds

2007-10-31T18:07:00.000-07:00

Have you been reading the Dante Valentine series? If not you need to read the latest Beyond Bounds up over at Blogcritics. I love this series, it truly is fantastic. Such great characters and a solid world. The fourth book hits shelves tomorrow and the fifth and final one in January. I can't wait to see how it all turns out. Please let Japh and Dante stay together!!!!

New Nora Roberts Trilogy!

2007-10-30T09:26:00.001-07:00

ISBN: 0515143804
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 336pp
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
Pub. Date: November 27, 2007
Price: $7.99

I've only recently started reading Nora Roberts. I got hooked in with her Circle Trilogy. I then read the first two books of her Key Trilogy and I have several of her novels sitting on my shelf waiting to be read. The one complaint I have is that after reading the Circle Trilogy her Key Trilogy was too similar to make me want to finish it right away. She seems to have a format that she follows and doesn't change too much. But it works. And I'll keep reading.

And on that note you can read an excerpt of Blood Brothers. Or check out the trailer for the book and the next two in the series.

Synopsis:

In the small village of Hawkins Hollow, three best friends who share the same birthday sneak off into the woods for a sleepover the evening before turning 10. But a night of pre-pubescent celebration turns into a night of horror as their blood brother oath unleashes a three-hundred year curse.

Twenty-one years later, Cal Hawkins and his friends have seen their town plagued by a week of unexplainable evil events two more times - every seven years. With the clock winding down on the third set of seven years, someone else has taken an interest in the town's folklore. Quinn is a well known scholar of local legends, and despite Cal's protests, insists on delving in the mystery. But when the first signs of evil appear months early, it's not only the town Cal tries to protect, but also his heart.

Meredith Fletcher's Latest

2007-10-29T08:38:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0373389752
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 288pp
Publisher: Silhouette
Pub. Date: November 2007
Price: $5.50

I've got this one waiting on my stack. I'm such a sucker for a good love story. And plus the girl's name is Winter! Winter. How cool is that name? I'm looking forward to diving into this one.

Synopsis:

HISTORY WILL REPEAT ITSELF... UNLESS SHE CAN STOP IT.

Juicy stories are investigative reporter Winter Archer's bread and butter. So when her beloved mentor asks her to write the biography of Athena Academy's founder, Winter jumps at the chance. But someone out there will stop at nothing—not even murder—to ensure that long-buried secrets remain hidden. And Winter can't finish the job unless she joins forces with the one man who is most definitely off-limits. Only together can they uncover the deadly plot that spans decades and threatens to destroy a legacy...

Beyond Bounds

2007-10-28T11:48:00.000-07:00

The weekly (or not so weekly) feature has gone up over at Blogcritics. I did this one over Juno Books. So there is a little bit of history about this small press as well as a round of up the titles that I have read and the ones that are in my to be read stack. Check it out!

'My Life in France' by Julia Child with Alex Prud'Homme

2007-10-27T22:04:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0316067253
Format: Paperback, 304pp
Publisher: Little Brown Bks Young Readers
Pub. Date: October 2007
Price:14.95

I can remember watching Julia Child on TV with my mom when I was little. I never sat and watched long; the distraction of playing house or a new Barbie always pulled me away, and running off I didn’t think twice about the woman on the screen with the funny accent. Then during my adolescence we took one of many trips to Washington D.C. to see the capital and visit the Smithsonian. There they have Julia Child’s complete kitchen, which she had donated to the National Museum of American History in 2001. I didn’t remember who Julia Child was and when I asked my mom she said simply, “She’s famous for cooking.”

I’ve never been much of a cook, I try and I am successful in some things, but the passion to cook doesn’t burn deep in my heart. I enjoy cookbooks though; I enjoy the idea that I too could create something so lovely and delicious. I buy them and try recipes only to be kicked out of the kitchen by my husband, the real cook in the family. But the wonderful thing about My Life in France is that you don’t have to be a cook to enjoy this delightful memoir about food, love, and life.

In the introduction Julia states “This is a book about some of the things I have loved most in life; my husband, Paul Child; la belle France; and the many pleasures of cooking and eating. It is also something new for me. Rather than a collection of recipes, I’ve put together a series of linked autobiographical stories, mostly focused on the years 1948 through 1954, when we lived in Paris and Marseille, and also a few of our later adventures in Provence. Those early years in France were among the best of my life.”

It all started in 1948 when Julia Child followed her husband, Paul Child, across the Atlantic aboard the SS America. Newly married and never having been to Europe before, though she did serve during World War II in Asia, she wasn’t sure what to expect. But to her delight France, particularly Paris, was absolutely wonderful.

Paris was where she learned to cook, taking lessons in the famous Cordon Bleu cooking school. Though Julia earned a diploma from this prestigious school she was mostly self-taught. Spending hours, days even, perfecting a simple recipe for mayonnaise or cooking the same dish from three or four different cookbooks, she poured her entire being into learning the correct way to do even the simplest task. Out of this passion her first cookbook with Louisette Bertholle and Simone Beck, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, was born.

Mixed into the stories are wonderful photographs taken by Paul Child as well as a handful of family photos. Glimpses of Paris in the late 1940s, Julia leaning out of their apartment window, and pictures of Julia teaching others to cook or learning herself; these black and white photos added so much to the rest of the book.

Julia Child passed away in 2004 but her passion for life and food still lives on through her many cookbooks and this memoir My Life in France. Passionate and fascinating I could not put it down as I read about Paris in the early 1950s. Julia’s first forays into the kitchen, her first real cooking lessons and the fire that burned within her to learn more; it makes for some of the best reading I’ve come across in nonfiction in a long time. My Life in France is a wonderful tale of self-discovery through cooking and food, stories that you will enjoy and that only leave you wishing for more.

'Betwixt' by Tara Bray Smith

2007-10-26T09:26:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 031606033X
Format: Hardcover, 496pp
Publisher: Little, Brown & Company
Pub. Date: October 2007
Price: $17.99

In Betwixt, Tara Bray Smith’s young adult debut, the author carefully sets the scene, meticulously building and placing each character in their human environment. But normal teenage things such as parties, parents, and relationships take on new meanings when you realize that these three normal-seeming teenagers are anything but.

Morgan is the perfect girl. Perfect grades and perfect face but underneath the gloss she is cruel and cold-hearted. As you get to know her, as facets of her life are revealed, you realize that she could go either way. The light and the dark are both offering her an option. But Morgan is only out to get as much for herself as possible and in the end she’ll chose the highest bidder.

Nix is something special. Since his childhood he has been able to see a light around a person before they were about to die; depending on the intensity of the light he could tell how long they had left. Because of this he has spent a large portion of his life running from those he cared about. Along the way he has picked up a drug habit to keep the lights at bay and to try to be as normal as possible.

Ondine is a girl that seems to have it all. Not perfect like Morgan, who just happens to be intensely jealous of her, but with her dark skin and violet eyes she is a girl that just seems to have something extraordinary about her. When her parents move away for a year, leaving her in her hometown of Portland to finish out her senior year, Ondine throws a party to end all parties.

There the three that have so little in common come together. What they’ve been feeling for so long, the changes in their bodies and minds, is hinted at. A mysterious boy by the name of Moth tells the three to come to a huge rave, The Ring of Fire, where they will learn the truth about themselves. Nix, who has been running for so long, is told to bring Ondine who is easily lost; while Morgan, headstrong and defiant, finds her own way there.

But the Ring of Fire isn’t what any of them expect. The truths that they learn, the things about themselves that they come to realize are hard for them to swallow. Ondine flat out denies that she could be something other than human. But for Nix, who has been plagued for so long by the rings of light, is relieved that there is an explanation and that maybe, finally he can stop running. Morgan is the only member of the small group to embrace the idea wholeheartedly.

Betwixt is the first in a series, as the author says “The story has just started.” It starts a little slow but builds speed until you are hurtling toward the shocking end and I’m curious to see where Smith will take us next. The idea is solid; she introduces some new ideas and weaves in the old stand bys to create a story that leaves you asking questions. Betwixt is basically a new spin on the classic fairy tales involving changelings and fairies with all the modern trappings of drugs, sex, and rock‘n’roll.

Harry Potter in the News

2007-10-25T08:04:00.000-07:00

With the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows a series that had become a phenomenon came to an end. But just because we've read the final chapter doesn't mean the news surrounding this famous series has come to an end as well.

Over at The Guardian they have an article about how Harry Potter broke a new record. "A rare first edition of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone has fetched the record-breaking price of £19,700 at auction."

Then of course we have the fact that J.K. Rowling outed Dumbledore. If you haven't heard about this yet all sorts of things can be read at the BBC News, E! News, Kansas City Star, Associated Press, Yahoo News, MTV (yes, let me repeat that MTV), ABC News, News Day, Daily Mail, Japan Today, The Globe and Mail, Sunday Mail, MSN News, and many many more. Trust me the list just goes on. It's all pretty much the same though.

Then over at Blogcritics Jet in Columbus asks Why Should it Matter?

What do you think?

'A Lifetime of Secrets' by Frank Warren

2007-10-23T19:32:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0061238600
Format: Hardcover, 288pp
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Pub. Date: October 2007
Price: $27.95

In 2005 Frank Warren launched a blog as an experiment in community art, inviting strangers to mail him anonymous homemade postcards with their secrets written on them. The only rule is that it has to be a true secret that you have never before shared. Be creative he told the masses. The response he received was overwhelming.

Each Sunday PostSecret is updated with all new secrets and every Monday morning, before I’ve poured my coffee or checked my work e-mail, I check PostSecret. Why do I read PostSecret? There are a lot of reasons. Each week it's different and each week I find a little bit of me in someone else’s words. Some make me cry, making me glad that I've come into the office early enough that I can cry in peace. Some make me laugh. Then there are the ones that steal my breath, break my heart, and make me want to reach out to who ever was brave enough to commit those words to paper. It’s all about making a connection even if it's only for the briefest of moments through an anonymous postcard and a computer screen or book.

In a Lifetime of Secrets, Frank Warren’s fourth collection, he says “I've selected postcards that show how secrets can reveal a momentary impulse or haunt us for decades and arranged them by age to follow the common journey we all take through childhood, adolescence, adulthood, maturity. Stretched over a full lifespan, the secrets expose the meaningful ways we change over time, and the surprising ways we don't.”

Happy, sad, beautiful, ugly, ecstatic, ornate, simple and everything in between; this is another collection worth looking for a bit of yourself in. Where ever you are in your life right now, whatever your path there is someone else out there who knows what it’s like. It's nice to think that maybe you aren't really alone.I was reading secrets online a few weeks back and I saw one that really struck a cord with me. “We are all part of something bigger and we are all part of it together."

Do you have a secret? Share it. Let it go and know that somewhere out there someone will laugh, cry, or realize that their life isn't as lonely or as hard as they thought. Today is the day to let go.

PostSecret
13345 Copper Ridge Rd
Germantown, Maryland 20874

what I'm reading right now...

2007-10-22T13:58:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 031606033X
Format: Hardcover, 496pp
Publisher: Little, Brown & Company
Pub. Date: October 2007
Price: $17.99

I'm about half way through with this one at the moment. It started a little slow but it has picked up. It builds on you slowly, things creeping around the edges until finally they jump out. The writing is very good, Smith paints a vivid picture with her words.

Read an excerpt or check out the cool site that has been set up for the book.

Steve Martin Memoir

2007-10-21T17:41:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 1416553649
Format: Hardcover, 224pp
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing Group
Pub. Date: November 20, 2007
Price: $25.00

I saw this the other day while browsing online and I think I'll have to read it.

Synopsis:

At age 10, Steve Martin got a job selling guidebooks at the newly opened Disneyland. In the decade that followed, he worked in Disney's magic shop, print shop, and theater, and developed his own magic/comedy act. By age 20, studying poetry and philosophy on the side, he was performing a dozen times a week, most often at the Disney rival, Knott's Berry Farm.

Obsession is a substitute for talent, he has said, and Steve Martin's focus and daring his sheer tenacity are truly stunning. He writes about making the very tough decision to sacrifice everything not original in his act, and about lucking into a job writing for The Smothers Brothers Show. He writes about mentors, girlfriends, his complex relationship with his parents and sister, and about some of his great peers in comedy Dan Aykroyd, Lorne Michaels, Carl Reiner, Johnny Carson. He writes about fear, anxiety and loneliness. And he writes about how he figured out what worked on stage.

This book is a memoir, but it is also an illuminating guidebook to stand up from one of our two or three greatest comedians. Though Martin is reticent about his personal life, he is also stunningly deft, and manages to give readers a feeling of intimacy and candor. Illustrated throughout with black-and-white photographs collected by Martin, this book is instantly compelling visually and a spectacularly good read.

2007-10-19T08:26:00.000-07:00

Right now I have a stack of books I need to be reading. I need to read them because I've gotten them from the author, publisher, or some independent firm and the price of the book is one review. I like this arrangement for the most part. It cuts down on the amount of cash I spend each month. But the one down side is that I don't always have time to read the things I would just like to read.

The list below are the books that I am hoping to get around to sometime soon. I have copies already, just waiting to be opened and fallen in love with. Have you read any of them? What did you think about them? Love them? Hate them? Never read them? I'm dying to know.

Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr
Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning
Thursday Next: First Among Sequels by Jasper Fforde
Tantalize by Cynthia Leitich Smith
Dark Lover by J.R. Ward
Ironside: A Modern Faery's Tale by Holly Black
Nightengale's Lament: A Novel of the Nightside by Simon R. Green
Hex and the City: A Novel of the Nightside by Simon R. Green
Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
Love Bites by Lynsay Sands

'Cook with Jamie: My Guide to Making You a Better Cook' by Jamie Oliver

2007-10-18T10:50:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 1401322336
Format: Hardcover, 448pp
Publisher: Hyperion
Pub. Date: October 2007
Price: $37.50

I love Jamie Oliver’s cookbooks. I have several on my shelf and in each one I always find recipes that I end up making over and over. Not to mention the recipes that I might never try but look good just the same. One of the things that makes Oliver’s cookbooks a must, beside the mouth-watering recipes, is the fact that he makes it seem so easy. He believes that you too can make your food look, as well as taste, just as good as the photographs that catch your eye. Makes me want to pick up my spatula.

Cook with Jamie is special though. All of the profit from the sale of this cookbook goes to the Fifteen Foundation, which is dedicated to helping young people. But Jamie says it so much better than I ever could:

“The idea behind Fifteen is pretty simple- every year we give a unique opportunity to a group of young people to become professional chefs. The kids we take on have had bit of a hard time and could do with a break. Many of them are homeless, have been raised in difficult circumstances, have spent time in prison or gone off the rails and got into drink and drugs. But at Fifteen we believe that we can inspire them to break habits and believe in themselves to become incredibly passionate chefs.”

So on that note we dive right into the kinds of things we should always have in our kitchens. Good knives, quality cookware, food processors, and all the other implements of kitchen torture. But not only does he cover the non-food items throughout the book, he talks about what cuts of meat to look for, veggies, fish, salad ingredients and simple dressings. He covers it all.

From Jamie’s Proper tomato salad to Southern Indian crab curry it all looks absolutely mouth-wateringly divine. There isn’t anything new here, just new takes on old recipes. But each one is presented in an easy manner making even the most intimidated newbie feel like they could tackle it.

And did I mention dessert? Yes, there is dessert too. Tea-Party Cupcakes, Classic Victoria sponge with all the trimmings, fifteen chocolate brownies, and a rather pleasing carrot cake with lime mascarpone icing. Yum!

Packed with recipes, over 175 with a focus on quality and freshness, Cook with Jamie is a must. And along with all those recipes he includes little personal notes about the food that makes Cook with Jamie more than just a cookbook. This is a book that you will pull out time and again to check measurements, share with your friends, or make sure you’ve got the right stuff for the job whether you’re making fresh pasta or roasting a turkey.

Beyond Bounds

2007-10-17T15:07:00.000-07:00

The weekly post just went up and can be read over at Blogcritics.

'Lover Unbound' by J.R. Ward

2007-10-17T13:50:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0451222350
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 528pp
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
Pub. Date: September 2007
Price: $7.99

I’ve heard J.R. Ward’s name a million times. Any time paranormal romance comes up, The Black Dagger Brotherhood series is always recommended reading. And all I’ve heard are good things. So I planed to pick up a book when I saw one, add it to my to-be-read pile, and I figured I would get around to it eventually.

This last weekend I was in my local super center and I saw a copy of Lover Unbound. When I picked it up I was surprised by how thick the book was; 502 page of small black type. I went ahead and bought it, thinking that I wouldn’t get around to it anytime soon.

Well Saturday night I picked it up. I wasn’t going to read it. I just wanted to browse a few pages. I told myself this firmly, I have so many other books I need to be reading. But once I picked Lover Unbound up I literally could not put it down. At four in the morning my husband finally made me turn the lights out.

Lover Unbound is the fifth book in The Black Dagger Brotherhood series. I haven’t read the rest of them, although I will now, but coming into the fifth book as a newbie was no problem. J.R. Ward fills in the details along the way and while you know that a lot of the characters have their own back stories the main focus of the novel is a new couple. So in a way it could stand on its own, though I bet it is better as a whole.

Vishous is a member of the Brotherhood, a select order of elite vampires who hunt lessers, which are a kind of vampire as well. There is a whole vampire hierarchy and the Brotherhood is pretty high up. But even though Vishous is a member of this select group he is still on the fringes. Having survived a horrible existence as a youth, Vishous is broken and hard with a taste for both sexes and S&M.

Jane is an ambitious doctor, head of emergency, and when Vishous comes under her care she takes an interest in him. With his facial tattoos, goatee, and six-foot muscled-up frame, he is quite an eye full. But Jane isn’t interested in what he looks on the outside; what catches her eye is his six-chambered heart. When the rest of Vishous’ brothers come to break him out of the hospital, they take Jane with them against her will.

There are a million storylines here. Characters from previous books come back, their storylines continuing, while new characters are introduced. But the main attraction is the story of Jane and Vishous. But even their love story isn’t simple; obstacle after obstacle is thrown in their way. Vishous’ destiny has been outlined for him and nowhere in that future is there room for Jane.

I’ve heard that this is the weakest of the series and I have to tell you Lover Unbound is pretty freaking fantastic. The pages fly, the characters draw you in and hold you with a strangle hold, and you are simply compelled to keep turning. I thought that 502 pages would be too long but by the time I reached the end I realized that it was not nearly long enough. I have a new favorite author.

before you buy...

2007-10-16T11:16:00.001-07:00

ISBN: 0316677469
Format: Hardcover, 304pp
Publisher: Little, Brown & Company
Pub. Date: October 2007
Price: $24.99

Alice Sebold's latest novel has hit the shelves. Can't decide if you want to read it or not? Read John Crace's Digest Read over at the Guardian first.

'Unveiling the Sorceress' by Saskia Walker

2007-10-15T09:38:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0809557819
Format: Paperback, 224pp
Publisher: Juno Books
Price: $12.95

Unveiling the Sorceress, Saskia Walker’s second novel published by Juno Books, is lush and exotic. I was pulled into the story, unable to set the book down as the kingdoms of Aleem and Karseedia came to life on the page. With haunting imagery and strong characters the story is filled with intrigue and romance that blossoms on the page and captures the reader's attention.

Amshazar, a skilled magi favored by the gods, is sent by the Council of the Gods to the exotic lands to make sure that rumors of impending war that have been circulating do not come true. With Santo, a spirit guide that is more hindrance than help, Amashazar weaves his way into the court of Karseedia. He soon becomes an advisor to Hanrah, the next Emperor of Karseedia, if he can get out from under the thumb of Mehmet, his vicious mother.

Elishiba is the Empress of Aleem and is about to be married to Hanrah of Karseedia, to ensure that their two rival countries remain in the state of delicate peace. A strong-willed and determined woman, she also has the slumbering gift of sorcery in her veins. The gift is awakened when Amazhazar arrives in Aleem as part of the group that will escort Elishiba back to her new home. The two, though enemies, are soon drawn to each other.

Wanting to secure her people's safety, Elishiba travels to Karseedia. There she meets Hanrah, her husband to be, and Mehmet, her future mother-in-law. The first meeting does not go well, and soon we learn that Mehmet does not plan to let Elishiba live long past her marriage day. But Elishiba’s strong will and her magical talent, not to mention Amshazar himself, all play a part in making sure she comes out alive.

The supporting characters are just as finely drawn as the main characters: Kerr the Karseedia slave that is taken into Elishiba’s private household; the twins Elra and Amra, who welcome him with open arms; Hanrah and his evil mother; each is unique and holds a thread that weaves through this intricate tale of intrigue and magic.

If you are looking for a quick read that will carry you away to somewhere else, Saskia Walker will take you there with Unveiling the Sorceress.

'Dark Hunger' by Christine Feehan (Graphic Novel)

2007-10-14T10:12:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0425217833
Format: Paperback, 208pp
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
Pub. Date: October 2007
Price: $10.00

While reading Dark Hunger I found myself giggling horribly like some preteen girl reading her mother’s explicit romance novel. I loved it, don’t get me wrong, but it was just so hard to take seriously. Its all-over-the-top dramatic dialogue set against the backdrop of a handsomely drawn long-haired man and a busty brunette. Throw in a little blood, some shape-shifting fight scenes, and a few moments gone hazy with love and you have something that is just so hard to put down!

Riordan is a Carpathian male who has been captured and held prisoner by a master vampire. Juliette is a shape-shifter who breaks into a lab in the middle of the jungle to release the animals being held there. She finds Riordan chained in a cell and sets him free. Immediately he realizes that she is his life mate, though it takes a little longer to convince her of that fact.

But once Juliette accepts the truth of the matter we move on to find out that her cousin and little sister are in trouble. The master vampire, the one that Riordan had been hunting but was captured by, was indirectly involved by helping rouged shape-shifting males. So with Riordan by her side, Juliette charges into the jungle to avenge her family and free her captured sister.

Carpathian’s hunt vampires mostly because they are capable of becoming a vampire if they surrender to the darker side of their nature. Which is why Feehan’s books are so successful. Every woman loves to read about the hard-to-reach guy that has this lurking dark side but also just happens to have a heart of gold. Wait! Isn’t that most romance novels? Anyway, it works just as well in graphic format at it does typed out word-for-word.

The artwork is fair, it isn’t anything fantastic, but it isn’t the worst I’ve seen. I really enjoyed the idea of Christine Feehan’s novels being done in a graphic format, I think that it brings a lot to her ongoing series. Plus it’s just plain fun.

The story is pretty basic, a hunky alpha male goes for the luscious brunette, tells her that he is her life mate and she falls head over heels (and lets face it, Girls, it works). We don’t need anymore of the story because they are simply meant to be and he’s immortal as well as being gorgeous. (If it gets any more sickly sweet I think I’ll have to go watch some zombie movies.)

If you haven’t read the rest of Christine Feehan’s novels you will sink right into the story without feeling as if you have missed something. As it is you get a good idea and it really only whets the appetite for something a bit longer and with less pictures.

And after all that, the giggling like a preteen and setting the book aside when it just got to be too disgustingly romantic, I love it. I love it and yes I will be buying the next one in the series. I just can’t help myself. Dark Hunger is my new guilty pleasure.

Kahnee Interviews Carole McDonnell

2007-10-13T02:42:00.000-07:00

My friend and fellow blogger Kahnee, over at Single & Blessed, recently had the chance to talk to Carole McDonnell about her debut book Wind Follower. I've picked a few of my favorite questions and answers but when you're done reading here you should follow the link and check out the rest of the interview.

Who are the two main characters in Wind Follower, and why do you think readers will love them?

Satha is the main female character. She’s a poor girl who finds herself suddenly betrothed one day to a rich kid. Very upsetting for her. But she does it. She’s practical and kind-hearted. Loic is the boy who suddenly decides he wants to marry her. He’s kind also, and he’s a typical petulant teenager who grows into manhood. Loic is not the regular hero. He’s got an illness. He’s been under the care of women who dote on him. He reads poetry, for heaven’s sake. Not epic poetry, love poetry. When Loic first sees Satha, what he likes about her is that she is caring and brave. Yes, she's beautiful - but he what matters is that she is kind.

They’re both good people. And lots of amazingly fantastic, triumphant, and heart-breaking things happen to them. What more can you ask for? The stories share a common plot but when the main characters are parted, Satha’s part becomes something like a slave narrative and Loic’s becomes a quest. Yes, Every African-American writer should write a slave narrative, don’t you think? It’s epic, and romance, and slave narrative. The reader should like it.

Where do you think speculative fiction is heading?

I really don’t know. Humans have always liked stories of the supernatural and the fantastic. As long as we’re fascinated with how the world works and with how different cultures work, we’ll love those stories. And, let’s face it, many stories are rooted in human sorrow. For instance, if we live in regret we think “what if I had done something differently?” Bingo, a time travel story is created. Writers who don’t like modern society might write a book in which history veered along a different path. Voila, an alternate history novel! A writer grieving for the loss of her dead child might do a novel on cloning. Science Fiction and Fantasy will always exist as long as writers and readers keep pondering the great “what if” of life. I think, though, that in the United States and Canada speculative fiction will become more multicultural. At least I hope so.

read the rest of the review here...

oh la la!

2007-10-12T13:57:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0425217833
Format: Paperback, 208pp
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
Pub. Date: October 2007
Price: $10.00

I borrowed this from a friend and will have a review up soon!

Publisher Review:

The New York Times bestselling author's Carpathian classic goes Manga! I've flipped through it and from what I could see it looks great. Plus it's only 208 pages?! Why wouldn't you read it?

Christine Feehan has reinvented the vampire novel with her New York Times bestselling Carpathian series. Now she and Berkley take her "out-of-the-ordinary" (Booklist) in a thrilling new direction--and this time it's more graphic than ever.

Riordan is an immortal Carpathian male, trapped and caged, his honor compromised by his captors. They're in his mind. They're in his blood. And not one can withstand his desire for revenge.

Juliette is an activist devoted to liberating animals from a secret jungle lab. What she stumbles upon is a prisoner like no other. She will release him from his bonds. He will release her from her inhibitions.

Bryson and Shakespeare

2007-10-11T15:25:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0060740221
Format: Hardcover, 208pp
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Pub. Date: October 23, 2007
Price: $19.95

I'm a huge fan of Bill Bryson. I always enjoy reading his travel essays (some of which I reread whenever I have the free time) and I loved A Short History of Nearly Everything. He recently released a memoir and with his newest book he steers clear of the travel once again. I haven't yet read The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid which just came out in paperback and I plan to buy a copy ASAP. And this one? I'll have to look into it as well.

Kirkus Reviews:

A telling glance at one of history's most famously unknowable figures. As sometimes happens with expatriates, journalist Bryson (The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid: A Memoir, 2006, etc.) often turned his attention to his native America during his 20-year residence in England (Made in America, 1995, etc.). Apparently he's now been back home long enough to look the other way in this 12th volume in James Atlas's well-received Eminent Lives series. And who better fits the bill for this assortment of brief biographies than Shakespeare, the literary behemoth who practically defines the Western canon yet boasts a CV that could hardly be slimmer.

As the typically wry Bryson observes, "It is because we have so much of Shakespeare's work that we can appreciate how little we know of him as a person. . . . faced with a wealth of text but a poverty of context, scholars have focused obsessively on what they can know." Bryson is just as happy to point out what we can't.

To him, Shakespeare is the "literary equivalent of an electron-forever there and not there." Indeed, he makes so much of the fact that so much has been made from the singularly few known facts of the Bard's life that one might say this thin volume's raison d'etre is to identify the many paradoxes surrounding all things Shakespeare, which Bryson candidly illuminates in several deft turns of phrase.

That is as good a track as any to take in this sort of Cliffs Notes-style overview of the rich afterlife and times of Shakespeare, recognized as great, Bryson claims, for his "positive and palpable appreciation of the transfixing power of language"-a point on which even those who don't believe Shakespeare was Shakespeare would agree, anda trait he happens to share with his biographer. Shakespeare redux for the common reader.

'Once Bitten, Twice Shy' by Jennifer Rardin

2007-10-10T17:22:00.000-07:00

ISBN:031602046X
Format: Paperback, 308pp
Publisher: Orbit
Price: $12.99

Before I started reading Once Bitten, Twice Shy I had read several reviews that claimed that this was a good book, a great book even. But in no way was I prepared for how truly wonderful Once Bitten, Twice Shy turned out to be. I loved it, plain and simple as that.

The story kicks off with Jaz and Vayl working together in Miami. Vayl is a vampire assassin, one of the CIA’s best, and Jaz is his bodyguard/assistant assassin. Six months previously Vayl had requested that she be assigned to him, since then the two have been dancing a fine line between working partners and something more.

When a routine assassination in Miami turns into a plot to infect the planet with a deadly virus, Vayl and Jaz find themselves in the middle of it. With a dirty senator on one side and a crazed fanatic on the other they must discover what links all the players together. Unsure of who they can trust or where they can turn Jaz and Vayl turn to each other.

Along the way we met a cast of supporting characters that are perfect; private investigator Cole, who just happens to find Jaz irresistible, to the irradiation of Vayl. Liliana, Vayl’s vampire ex-wife, who we love to hate; Cassandra, a psychic who helps Jaz tap into some of her extra ordinary gifts and Bergman, a freelance tech guy for the CIA, and one of Jaz’s oldest friends.

Jaz’s inner dialogue was fun, she’s a smart-ass and has a bit of temper but you just love her all the more for it. She does have an edge most of the time but underneath all that is a woman who has been to hell and back. Jaz loves her family, even if they get on her nerves; she loves her country, her job and will do whatever it takes to keep Vayl safe. This is a character that you fall in love with from the start. Who wouldn’t like a smart-mouth assassin with a penchant for nice cars?

Something else I loved about Once Bitten, Twice Shy is that it starts out so simple. You think that you already know how the story will go and as you read on you realize that this is something completely new. Jennifer Rardin is a name to watch and if you haven’t yet picked up her debut then you should. I already can’t wait to read the second, Another One Bites the Dust.

Why do you love Postsecret?

2007-10-09T13:13:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0061238600
Format: Hardcover, 144pp
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers

Price: $27.95

I love Postsecret. I have a lot of reasons why I do. While reading Frank Warren's collections or browsing the new secrets every Sunday on his blog I am always amazed that I am not alone. Have I sent secrets off? Yes. I have friends who have as well. The funny thing is that we haven't talked about the ones we have sent off. I don't think that we ever will. But they are out there, the truth, the pain and beauty of the hurt that lurks inside the soul. Today is the day to see if your secret made it into the new collection.

'Beg for Mercy' by Toni Andrews

2007-10-08T09:16:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 077832365X
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 320pp
Publisher: Mira
Price: $6.99

Beg for Mercy is one paranormal novel that (insert gasp here) has no vampires, werewolves, or magic. Crazy, huh? But for Toni Andrews and her character Mercy it works just as well without those things, and as much as I love those elements, it’s nice to dip into the paranormal without them.

Mercy has something she calls ‘the press’ which is a psychic ability she can use to make people do what she says. Mercy has learned that using her ability can cause problems, so she has put as much emotional distance between her and the rest of humanity as humanly possible. But no one is ever truly alone, as Mercy soon learns, and when she needs them, the friends she thought she never had coming running.

But before Mercy can learn some things about herself a whole bunch of stuff has to go wrong first. When her best friend Sukey brings another unsuitable guy around and gets burned, Mercy is there to pick up the pieces. Sukey gets drugged and dumped at the local emergency room and once Mercy is sure that Sukey is all right she goes in search of the guy who did this to her best friend. When she finds him she presses him to get out of town and never come back.

You would think that this should solve the problem for everyone. This is where you would be wrong and where handsome Dominic walks into the picture. Dominic claims to be a relative to the missing man and refuses to leave Mercy alone once he realizes she had something to do with his disappearance. At first he is charming and suave but soon he reveals a much darker side as he tries to press his own answers out of Mercy.

Along the way Mercy meets Sam, the new guy in town, and the two hit it off. Sam is recovering from a failed relationship and although he is attracted to Mercy he doesn’t like the fact that she seems to be keeping so many secrets from him. Both characters are damaged goods, two broken people in a broken world, but they somehow manage to keep it together.

Then things go from bad to worse as Sukey goes missing - thanks to Dominic. Mercy is given an ultimatum and warned that if she does not follow through her friend’s life is at stake. From there it is a wild ride as Mercy tries to discover where Sukey is and how she can save her.

The story takes place in Balboa, California and the setting is just as important as any of the colorful characters. The small town feel, the local bar, and marina all play a big part and Toni Andrews paints the setting perfectly.

Beg for Mercy is a paranormal tale with light romance thrown in but what drives the story forward, and kept me turning pages well past 2 in the morning, was the search and rescue of Sukey. The first in a series, Angel of Mercy has a release date of May 2008, and I can’t wait to see what adventures Mercy will have next.

An Interview with Matthew Cook

2007-10-07T11:22:00.000-07:00

Blood Magic is Matthew Cook’s debut and once I started reading I found myself unable to put the book down as Kirin’s past and present rushed toward each other in a story that simply demands to be read. Mr. Cook recently took the time to answer some of my burning questions about his new novel as well as his writing and publishing experiences.

What started you writing?

MC: I’ve been scribbling stories for almost as long as I can remember, actually. I remember showing some sort of Scooby Doo-esque monster whodunit to my grandfather when I was in grade school one time. He told me that he could see me being a writer one day and encouraged me to keep at it. He’s who I wrote Blood Magic's Dedication for (thanks again, Pops).

For years, I channeled my storytelling creativity into role-playing games instead of formal stories or novels. I’ve been in several regular gaming groups since college, some for years and years, generally always with me as the Game Master. This was very fun, of course, and fulfilled my urge to tell tales, but eventually decided that I wanted to actually say something that more than six or seven people could hear.

Eventually, I decided to take a chance and start writing an actual novel. It was insane: I was 35, a father of two with a full time job and countless creative "hobbies" on the side (photography, illustration, editing the PC games and hardware section for MyGamer.com) and there I was deciding to begin a writing career on top of everything else, not with short stories like most normal authors, but with a full-blown novel. Thinking back on it, it’s crazy that I ever got off the ground.

The story I decided to tell was one that I’d had rolling around in my head ever since I was an art student in Chicago. It was going to be a tale of a regular guy that ends up in the middle of a faerie war. Part of it was my missing the city: I still love Chicago and there’s a part of me that still wants to go back there one day. The mental imagery I have from that place is still so strange and unique and, well, magical, that I wanted to share it with others. I never finished that piece, but the three years that I worked on it taught me a tremendous amount about consistency and the work ethic that a novelist needs to have if they have any chance of completing a manuscript.

Since you work during the day, how and where do you find the time to work on your novel?

MC: That’s an excellent question, and it’s one that I hear quite often any time would-be writers start talking about the actual writing process. In my case, I tried several different methods of working before I hit on the one that works best for me.

I’m a night owl, so at first I tried working in the late evenings, after my family had gone to bed. It was nice and relaxing, but I found that I was too easily distracted by the web to remain focused. Often, I’d go off on a quest to do some online research and end up at 3:00 AM without a word written. I filled countless Word documents with facts that I planned to use in my writing, but very little in the way of the actual story. After a month or two of this, I’d become discouraged and abandon the story for weeks or months.

Then I read in several different author’s autobiographies or essays on writing that many of them began by getting up early, before their day jobs, to work on their fiction. Now, you have to understand: for an insomniac like me, getting up before I needed to was little different from pouring boiling oil down my pants, so I initially resisted the idea. Eventually, though, the pain of not writing exceeded the pain of getting up early, so I gave it a shot.

I think I wrote fewer than 10 pages that entire first month, all of which I ended up tossing since they were basically unreadable. But, the habit stuck. Now, I get up about 90 minutes early four to five days a week to write before work. I go to coffee places, wherever I can sit quietly and type. The swirl of people around me is actually a great distraction and seems to keep my mind limber. The deadline I have to honor if I’m to get to my job on time keeps me focused, and I can generally complete about five to seven pages every morning – that adds up week after week and month after month.

How can you not work from an outline? I always find myself getting lost without one.

MC: The answer is... I have no idea. I like to have a few pages written sketching out the overall flow of the story... This happens and then this other thing happens and somehow this last thing ends up happening as a result... that sort of thing. But I seldom know all the deeper connections until I start working. Most of the time, even I end up having those "Oh,... so that's why this guy was so hostile to my main character back in Chapter five!" moments. I like to think it's my subconscious playing shell games with my sanity.

Does that mean I never get lost? Hell no. I get lost all the time. Sometimes my little side trips lead to sub-plot swamps that I almost don't escape.... Sometimes that wastes my time while I backtrack, although I'm getting better with that the more I write. But it's so damn fun to see where the paths go that I think it's worth the extra effort. After all, if it stops being fun for me than I can't (or, more properly - won't) do it any more.

What has the publishing experience been like for you so far?

MC: So far it’s been absolutely wonderful. I feel so lucky that I ended up meeting Paula Guran from Juno Books at Context 2006, and that she decided to take a chance on my manuscript. Paula makes the entire process, from editing, to contracts, to PR, very easy for me and enjoyable. I don’t know what other people’s experiences with publishers has been, but I’m finding that so long as you remain professional and respectful of their time, working writers and editors are among the nicest people on the planet (even the curmudgeons, of which spec fiction has more than its share).

That’s not to say that it’s been easy. There’s an amazing amount of stress that a writer has to endure when they finally get to the point where they feel ready to start putting their work out into the world for consideration. If you’re not careful, you can get your ego seriously stomped into the mud. I think the thing that all writers have to remember, though, is that editors are not the enemy! Without a writer’s stories, an editor would have nothing to publish. No publishing means no money for the imprint or magazine. Editors are actively looking for new writers and new manuscripts, believe me, and most (if not all) of them got into genre editing not to strike it rich but because they love to read the kind of stories we write. Just remember to always be polite and respectful, write about things you’re genuinely excited about, and always… always… do everything you can to continuously polish your writing and one day you’ll probably sell.

When it comes to dark fantasy, since you just happening to be writing it, what do you recommend reading?

MC: Well, I’m a huge fan of urban fantasy authors like Emma Bull and Charles de Lint, and I’d recommend anything from either author. I’ve been very impressed with the work of Holly Black recently, as well – there’s definitely some dark themes happening there, if that’s your cup of tea.

Also, Juno Books (my publisher) put out a "Sneak Peek" booklet a few months back containing the first four chapters of my book, along with the first part of Silvia Kelso’s new novel Amberlight, and I have to say I was very, very impressed. Juno’s had some challenges getting Amberlight to market, but they seem to have worked through them, and I’ll definitely be picking up a copy when it’s released in November.

I think that in many ways the crime fiction genre goes well with fantasy, dark or otherwise – after all, the world portrayed in, say, a Dashiel Hammet novel is in many ways as "fantastic" as a modern fantasy. I’ve been reading a lot from James Swain recently as well, and find his Tony Valentine novels very entertaining. In this same vein, I just finished Warren Hammond’s first novel, KOP, which is a Sci-Fi, hard-boiled cop story. Not really "dark fantasy" but good stuff, nonetheless.

I also think that if you like it dark (so to speak) you really should look outside of the genre publishers - at authors like Joyce Carol Oates. Some of the stuff she writes about, both in her short fiction as well as in her novels is more chilling than practically anything I’ve read that’s been published specifically as "dark fantasy" or even "horror". Plus, she has a way of building images with words that is, quite literally, breathtaking. Chuck Palahniuk, the guy who wrote Fight Club (among other great novels) really has a way with imagery that’s at once startlingly lovely and equally disturbing as well, and I can’t recommend him enough.

As a male author did you find it hard to find your female protagonists' voice?

MC: You know, maybe it’s because I’m constantly living in my head and imagining what other people would say or do in a certain situation, but I don’t think it was terribly hard, no. I have to admit, though, that I was really terrified that my "voice" for Kirin (the main character in Blood Magic) would come off as sounding like a man trying to write like a woman, and would somehow sound false to a female reader. Add in the fact that I decided to write the whole thing in first person point-of-view, and that many of the issues that the character has to deal with are very specific to women (motherhood, enduring an abusive marriage, etc.), and basically I ended up petrified that what I was saying and writing would be a flop.

Luckily, I have a tremendous "alpha reader", Jen, that convinced me that I wasn’t totally off in left field with what I wanted to say (or how I wanted to say it), and any time that I was out of my depth, she was able to steer me back onto the right path. My wife, Kara, also has a really unique outlook on the world and possesses a tremendously strong personality, so it’s no wonder that I see a lot of her in Kirin as well. I guess I’m just lucky that I like strong women because I seem to surround myself with them. They inform so much of what I do.

Do you think that the non-traditional romance of the book will scare prospective readers away?

MC: God, I hope not. I mean, love is love, right? Who cares if that love is that of a man for a women or a women for a man, or something different like that of a women for another woman, etc.? What matters is the emotion, not the physical act (at least, to me).

In Blood Magic, though, the nature of Kirin and Lia’s relationship is more about friendship and loyalty than a more traditional "romance". Honestly, I wouldn’t know how to write a "romance novel" if I tried – I know that genre is just chock-full of talented writers and very specific themes and tropes. In Blood Magic, I just tried to show two people that get thrown into a stressful, life-threatening situation and turn to each other for support.

I should probably explain here that I generally "make it up as I go" when I sit down to write, and very seldom work from a formal outline, so often I find my characters doing or saying things that I hadn’t anticipated. It can be a lot of fun, but it can be a huge time waster, especially when one of their little side-plots doesn’t pan out, but that’s how I’m most comfortable working.

That being the case, when Kirin and Lia began to deepen their relationship, it sort of came as a shock to me. Initially, I thought of Lia as more of a youthful sidekick-type than the powerful, full partner she ended up becoming, so it was startling to me when she began to outgrow my own preconceived notions. I love it when that happens. It’s that friendship (in my opinion) that makes everything that happens to the two of them bearable.

The second book of your trilogy, Nights of Sin, has a release date for 2008. Can you share any hints of what Kirin and Lia might be up to next?

MC: Sure! In Book Two, Kirin and Lia travel to the Imperial City to continue their struggle against the Mor. My goal for the story was to answer some crucial questions that were only hinted at in the first book, specifically: why exactly are the Mor attacking humans and how does Kirin fit in?

Also, I really wanted to put a strain on their relationship. One of my favorite authors, Connie Willis, said in a discussion panel once that "in a story, things must always get worse" and that when a writer is stuck as to where to go in a plot, to torment the characters. I was never stuck on where to go in Book Two’s plot (a benefit of my "making it up as I go" process), but I took that advice to heart, and I think you’ll definitely see things getting tougher for Kirin and Lia as Book Two progresses.

I also really wanted to talk about deeper themes than I usually see in fantasy books, specifically the way that even good relationships are affected by mistrust, dishonesty and lies, and setting these all-too-human themes against the backdrop of a "fantasy zombie/ monster-invasion with a touch of courtly intrigue" story was oddly appealing to me. With a little luck, hopefully the readers will find it intriguing and entertaining, and maybe even a little chilling, as well.

Beyond Bounds

2007-10-05T10:26:00.000-07:00

I've got this week's feature up over at Blogcritics. I wanted to say thanks to Chris and The Fantasy Book Critic (because I linked to both of your sites, hope you get lots of traffic)

check out this weeks feature

'Blood Magic' by Matthew Cook

2007-10-04T09:00:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0809572001
Format: Paperback, 264pp
Publisher: Juno Books
Price: $6.99

Blood Magic is Matthew Cook’s debut and I have to admit that for a first book I am more than a little impressed. Once I started reading I found myself unable to put the book down as Kirin’s past and present rushed toward each other in a story that simply demands to be read. Not only does Cook tell a strong story, he gives us a strong convincing female protagonist, something not all male writers can pull off.

Blood Magic is divided into two parts, the chapters alternating between Kirin’s present and past. From her childhood and young adult life ruled by her twin sister to the years she spent as a necromancer and then a scout, her tale is full of pain and suffering. Made strong through the choices she was forced to make she becomes something that even she does not fully understand.

When Kirin’s twin is savagely murdered, Kirin avenges her death. In the process she transforms herself from a green-eyed beauty to a black eyed necromancer with powerful blood magic. Kirin runs from the small town she had called home and lives for years in the wilderness before becoming a scout for the Imperial Army. When the Mor, an army of creatures that have lived for generations under the earth, start to attack human settlements once again, Kirin joins the fight against them.

Along the way Kirin meets Lia Cho, a sorceress able to call lightening from the sky. Lia has left her school in the mountains and is headed for her father in the capital city, knowing that he needs her help. A priest by the name of Ato travels with Lia and knows Kirin for what she is by her black eyes. He tries to warn Lia away, but Lia and Kirin are drawn together. One light and one dark, the characters play off each other perfectly.

While Kirin does come to find love in the form of Lia, this is not your traditional romance. This is the story of Kirin - witch, necromancer, user of dark blood magic and the people who have come into her life, Lia being one of them. Cook also puts a nice spin on the idea of necromancy. Kirin can call souls back to their bodies, but the bodies do not rise whole; instead, what Kirin calls her ‘sweetlings’ are birthed from the cocoon of flesh. Short and made of exposed muscle and tendon, they are lethal warriors she uses to defend herself.

The world is pure fantasy, a medieval-feeling place that lacks all modern technology. There are odd six-legged beasts but other than that it feels like a long lost Earth. I would have liked to know more about the deadly Mor -- why are they attacking the humans after so many years? But since Blood Magic is the first in a trilogy (the second book has a working title of Nights of Sin and a release date is set for July of 2008), I’m sure that all will be revealed in time. The characters are solid, Kirin exceptional, and the story is perfectly balanced between the past and the present.

Colleen Gleason on Books & Blogging

2007-10-03T09:33:00.000-07:00

Last March I got the chance to talk to Colleen Gleason about her new series, The Gardella Vampire Chronicles, which kicked off with The Rest Falls Away. At that point her second book, Rises the Night, had not yet been released. Now with the first and second book on the shelves I am waiting for the third book, The Bleeding Dusk, to be released.

I once again had the opportunity to ask her some questions. From her latest read, her blogging experiences, and her newest book she took the time to share her thoughts with us and gives us just enough hints to make the wait for the third book nearly unbearable.

_______________________________

I read on your blog, For All the World to See, that the Gardella Vampire Chronicles were picked up in Italy, and I loved the cover. How many countries have you been published in now? How does it feel?

I thought the Italian cover was really neat; and a very different concept than the American version. Very atmospheric and gothic (and a little bloody, too), to go along with the Italian title: The Vampire Hunter. The Italian version is being released in early November, and I expect the Spanish version will come out within the next six to eight months. There are other negotiations for foreign editions going on as I write this, and I hope within the next year, there will be more.

In addition, I’ve already heard of people seeing and buying the American version of the book in Scotland, Hong Kong, Australia, and South Korea, so it’s pretty exciting to know that people all over the world have seen and read The Rest Falls Away and Rises the Night. I get email from people from places like Brazil, Spain, and Belgium, too. It’s a wonderful experience to touch global readers.

I’ve noticed that besides the time that you must set aside to work on your novels you also blog every day, or almost every day. What do you like so much about blogging that it keeps you posting?

When I first started blogging, it was hard to come up with interesting or relevant things to write about, but I wanted to establish an Internet presence before my books were released as part of my marketing plan. I’ve made some great friends via my blog (and theirs) in the last year since I started blogging regularly, and it’s become a lot easier to maintain the blog — partly because I know who my audience is. I have regular fans who visit the blog, as well as other surfers who come by, but perhaps haven’t read the books or aren’t familiar with them.

I enjoy blogging because it gives me a chance to stay in touch with readers — to hear what they’re thinking, to find out what they’re interested in, to keep them up to date on my new releases, and to simply get to know them. The Internet has given authors the opportunity to interact with their readers in ways that we only dreamed of a decade ago, and I enjoy taking advantage of technology to do so. It’s really fun to get to know the people who read and enjoy my books, plus make friends along the way.

Authors who like to interact with their readers have Web sites, but that tends to be a one-way communication. That’s important, and of course, I have a Web site too, but I like blogging because it’s a two-way street. I don’t know that I’ll ever have message boards or an email list, so blogging is the next best thing. Plus that makes it open to anyone who happens along to my blog.

I try to make the blog an interactive place — I’m always asking for opinions, often holding contests, and I certainly do use it for self-promotion and updates. I’ve learned a lot, and solicited a lot of opinions from people over the year — from books to read, places to visit, opinions on movies, TV, and music, and other such topics. I had a Pay It Forward Contest on my blog last year, and got to see the best side of people when they posted about things they did to “pay it forward.”

Do you think that the blogs are a good place to get your book noticed?

I don’t think of my blog as a place that attracts people to my books, per se. I think my blog is a place that people find when they have already heard about my books. Either they get to it from my Web site, or from a link from another blog or site.

However, I absolutely love being interviewed or guest-posting on other peoples’ blogs! That’s one of the best ways I’ve found to get more name recognition, and to interest other people in my books — people who may not have heard about them, or who would normally not pick them up until they learn more about the books. I’m always extremely appreciative of anyone who offers to have me on their blog, or to allow me to guest-blog and answer questions about my books, being a writer, the publishing business, or anything else.

I do think that other blogs help to get my book noticed — I’ve seen it happen. Each blog has its own circle of influence, and any time one gets to be introduced to a new circle of readers, there’s a chance someone’s going to be interested. It’s the “I’ll tell two friends, they’ll tell two friends, and they’ll tell two friends….” (Was that Wella Balsam? I can never remember.)

Have you read anything good lately?

Oooh! Of course. I just finished reading Beneath a Marble Sky by John Shors, which I adored. This was a novel about the building of the Taj Mahal, and the (fictional) love story of Shah Jahan’s daughter, whose mother was the reason the Taj was built. It was a fabulous historical fiction novel, rich with detail and setting and custom. I loved it.

I also just reread several Barbara Michaels books that I’d read about two decades ago (I can’t believe it’s been that long!) — contemporary gothic romances that I just adored: Be Buried in the Rain and Shattered Silk.

And I’m just starting to read The Road to Hell, written by my friend Jackie Kessler, about a succubus who runs away from Hell and comes to New York to be a strip artist.

I remember reading somewhere, and I’m not sure where, that you were surprised that your books had been categorized as paranormal romances. Do you consider your Gardella Vampire Chronicles paranormal or historical fantasy?

I don’t think I was ever surprised that my publisher decided to market the series as paranormal romances, because I knew about it once the decision was made — but what you probably saw was my reaction to that decision. The publisher had to decide how to position the series, and from the beginning, it was a great point of discussion.

The books are technically not romances because in a romance, there is some kind of happily ever after ending between a hero and a heroine. This doesn’t happen in my books; there is an ongoing lead character, Victoria Gardella Grantworth, whose story we follow over five (planned) books — and while part of her story is her intimate, love relationships with the men in her life, the other part is her character development and the tasks and events that occur in her life. Because her story isn’t “wrapped up” until the last book, the series doesn’t perfectly fit into the paranormal romance genre.

Most people who are familiar with urban fantasy consider my books historical urban fantasy because of this aspect, and I don’t disagree — but at the same time, I sort of try not to categorize the books too much. They really do straddle a multitude of genres: historical fiction, romance, horror, action-adventure, etc. There’s something for everyone in the books, and there’s not too much of any one thing.

Your third book in the Gardella Vampire Chronicles, The Bleeding Dusk, comes out February 5, 2008. You said originally that it was going to be a five-book installment with Victoria and then you would move onto a new character. Now that you are coming closer to the end of the story, do you think she will be a hard character to let go?

Victoria and all of her supporting cast — yes, they will be hard to say good-bye to. The ones that are alive anyway. ;-) But I’m also always letting other main characters perk in the back of my mind as I write Victoria’s story. One of the things I’ve always wanted to avoid doing is having everything happen to one character, which often happens in an ongoing series. Either that, or the character doesn’t grow and begins to stagnate.

I hope to avoid both of those what I consider pitfalls in a series by letting Victoria have her “happy ending” and then to move onto another female vampire hunter that I can torture — er, I mean write about.

I know it isn’t fair to ask but I have to — I’m just so desperate to know what the future holds for Victoria, Max, and Sebastian. Would you give us a hint about what happens in The Bleeding Dusk?

Hmmm…what can I tell you without giving anything big away? Well, let’s see. We find out more about Max’s background, and also about Sebastian’s other secret. Victoria takes over as the head of the Venators, and when she gets into a sticky situation, a special garment helps her to escape. Ladies Nilly and Winnie go vampire hunting. And we get to visit Lilith’s lair—twice.

How’s that for a tease?

Thank you so much Colleen for taking the time to answer some questions! I've really enjoyed getting the chance to talk to you again.

Thank you so much for having me! I always enjoy your questions, and enthusiasm about the books.

Debut Fantasy from Carole McDonell

2007-10-02T09:36:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0809557797
Format: Paperback, 248pp
Publisher: Juno Books
Price: $12.95

Tia, over at Fantasy Debut, has been reading this one and it has caught my eye. It sounds like it should be pretty good. Strong characters and an interesting world. You can read Tia's reviews of the first few chapters at her blog. Then you can check out Carol McDonell's blog where she is spotlighting Frank Creed.

Synopsis:

Satha, a dark-skinned woman from a poor Theseni clan weds young Loic, the wealthy Doreni son of the king's First Captain. Despite coming from different tribes, they begin to forge a life together. But Satha's compassion is used against her when a treacherous enemy contrives to dishonor her in Loic's absence. Loic must then avenge Satha's honor as well as his own. He sets out on a journey that brings deep despair as well as spiritual discovery. Battling him are the Arkhai, spirits of the land who know his quest will lead him toward the God whom they have usurped. After his departure, Satha is kidnapped, sold into slavery and learns how truly cruel life can be. Both face great hardship, danger, and anguish apart, but with the Creator's aid there remains hope they will be reunited and heal the love the world has torn asunder.

'The Darkangel' by Meredith Ann Pierce

2007-10-01T20:52:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0316067237
Format: Paperback, 256pp
Publisher: Little, Brown & Company
Price: $7.99

First published in 1982 The Darkangel by Meredith Ann Pierce is the first in the Darkangel trilogy. The series is being reissued by Little, Brown & Company with gorgeous new covers. I have to admit that the cover is what first caught my eye. But I was lucky that it wasn’t just another pretty face, what I found within the pages is a solid young adult fantasy worth reading more than once.

The Darkangel, once a mortal and not quite a vampire, must have 14 brides before he can come into his full power and immortality. He keeps his wives in his cold castle, wraiths without their souls, which he wears in lead vials around his neck. When the Darkangel steals away Eoduin, Aeriel, her slave and friend, vows to avenge her mistress and waits for the Darkangel to return.

But when the Darkangel comes back to claim Aeriel, she finds that he is too beautiful for her to kill. At first she thinks she too will become one of his brides but he scoffs at the idea, claiming that she is too ugly. Instead he has brought her to his castle as a servant; she is to weave the clothes for his brides and when he chooses his 14th and final bride it will be Aeriel that weaves the bridal gown.

Below the castle, in deep caves, lives a little man by the name of Talb. A magician of sorts, he helps Aeriel survive her first few months there, providing her with food and company when the voices of the wraith brides become too much. Aeriel also makes friends with the Darkangel’s gargoyles, bringing them food and coming to love them. She even becomes close to the Darkangel, sharing stories with him and coming to care for him, although she does not realize it at first.

While the Darkangel is cruel and seems heartless, Aeriel still sees some good in him. But when she realizes that with the Darkangel’s final bride he will not only come into his full power but that he will join others of his kind to take over the world, she takes action. With guidance from Talb, Aeriel escapes the Darkangel and goes on a quest to find an object that will help her save his withered soul.

The Darkangel is not the vampire story you might expect. Written years before a revolution was led by authors everywhere towards bodice-ripping novels that featured blood-sucking hunks, Pierce crafted an original fantasy with a vampire at its heart. More adventure and self-discovery than romance, this is a story of Aerial and her growth. Nevertheless the idea of romance is there; the pale beautiful face, the night black wings, the other worldly power, all elements that have followed the vampire into more modern settings.

But leave whatever vampire expectations you have behind you. The Darkangel is solid, finely wrought fantasy with hints of science fiction thrown in. The second book, A Gathering of Gargoyles, was released with its new cover this month with the third and final volume, The Pearl of the Soul of the World, hitting stores in February 2008. If you can’t wait that long, of course there is always local used bookstores and the used section on Amazon. But I’ve always been a sucker for a pretty cover, so I think I’ll just wait it out.

'Agents of Light and Darkness' by Simon R. Green

2007-09-29T10:44:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0441011136
ISBN-13: 9780441011131
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 233pp
Publisher: Ace /Penguin Group (USA)
Price: $6.99

John Taylor has a new case in Agents of Light and Darkness, the second book in the Nightside series by Simon R. Green. When the Unholy Grail turns up it’s only a matter of time before the people living in the Nightside think of John Taylor and his gift for finding things. But it isn’t only the major and minor players who are looking for this evil object; the forces of light and dark are after it as well. Heaven and Hell will turn the Nightside into a battleground looking for the Unholy Grail unless John can find it first.

Contracted by a mysterious priest by the name of Jude, John sets out to recruit some help. He finds Suzie Shooter vegetating on her couch, her apartment a mess, but when he mentions work she brightens up and suits up in her signature studded black leather. Suzie, by the way, has a poster of Emma Peel on her wall with ‘My Hero’ scrolled in lipstick underneath it. I just love that.

So with Suzie by his side, John sets out to find the Unholy Grail. But things aren’t always what they seem, this is the Nightside after all, and nothing is going to be easy. When it is always 3am and the bad guys don’t have to wait for dark you never know what you might find around the corner. But he’s John Taylor, I mean come on, they know better than to take him on. That doesn’t stop them from trying though.

Besides the gruesome, graphic, utterly wonderful horror, there is a lot of humor here: dark, bitter, twisted smiles that curve the corners of broken lips as the grin-wearing fool wipes blood out of his eyes. I guess the phrase would be darkly comic. Well, Simon R. Green has mastered it and makes it seem effortless.

Razor Eddie, the Punk God of the Straight Razor, is back as well. From John and Suzie to Cathy, The Collector, and the gang at Strangefellows, how can you not love these characters? And with details like The Little Sisters of the Immaculate Chain Saw and Nasty Johnny Starlight, you have something that is so far beyond amazing it borders on insane. Yes, insane.

I read a lot, I think I read more than is good for my brain sometimes, and these books stand out like a decapitated body in a church. Read them.

You can purchase an electronic version of Agents of Light and Darkness straight from the publisher here. While you are at it check out the tribute site to Simon R. Green, Blue Moon Rising.

Beyond Bounds: The Paranormal and Fantasy with Katie

2007-09-28T07:44:00.000-07:00

My first weekly feature is up over at Blogcritics! I'm going to be doing a weekly feature on paranormal and fantasy news, reviews, and interviews from now on. I'll be posting a link here for anyone that wants to check it out. I wanted to say thanks to SciFiChick for the permission to link to her interview with Jennifer Rardin. I did this weeks feature on her debut book.

Check out the feature and tell me what you think!

'Territory' by Emma Bull

2007-09-27T09:36:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0312857357
ISBN-13: 9780312857356
Format: Hardcover, 320pp
Publisher: Tor
Price: $24.95

Like all good westerns Territory, Emma Bull’s latest offering to the world of fantasy, starts with a lone man riding into a small town. Or rather a man who has been shot being carried into town by a stolen horse, which is even better. That this town just happens to be Tombstone and the characters that pop up some of the most famous men in Western history only add to what becomes an unforgettable tale of magic and men.

‘Wyatt Earp. Doc Holliday. Ike Clanton. You think you know the story. You don’t.’ Most people know about the shoot-out at the O.K. Corral, that part of the story doesn’t need to be explained. In a lot of ways the end doesn’t matter because the most fascinating part is how it started, where it all began and who was really involved.

Trouble breaks out for the Earp brothers when a stage coach is almost robbed and two men killed in the attempt. The youngest Earp, Morgan, was involved and even though Doc Holliday tries to keep it quiet, Wyatt finds out. Wyatt is the head of the clan, from his brothers to their wives and families; he is the man that they turn to. There is something special about Wyatt, almost a sixth sense; he is able to find the outlaws that no one else can, it seems as if he is able to read minds. To protect his little brother and his family from the scandal that the truth would cause Wyatt takes matters into his own hands.

Jesse Fox comes into town dusty and footsore, following his stolen horse, and with his arrival trouble follows. He first meets Doc Holliday, disrupting his game of poker, in a saloon. Jesse is just passing through; he never would have come to Tombstone if his horse hadn’t been stolen, and has plans to leave as soon as possible. But when he finds Lung, a friend of his from San Francisco living in Chinatown, he decides to stay on for awhile.

Mildred is a widow living and working in Tombstone. When her husband passed away a year ago she could have moved back east, but she stayed, proving to be made of sterner stuff than most. Working at one of the local papers by day as a typesetter, spending her nights penning serial stories for a sensational magazine, she is content. When Jesse walks into The Nugget to pick up a paper she is caught off guard, but then, so is he.

As the battle for Tombstone whirls around the residents, Jesse with his knack for finding trouble and Mildred with her newspaper eye get to know each other, discovering that there might be a reason they have been drawn together. Wyatt Earp, busy manipulating people, is sure that his way is best. Whatever the means might be they justify the end in his eyes; if he has to use his family and friends to make peace a permanent part of life in Tombstone he plans to do so.

From the main street of Tombstone to the exotic smells of Chinatown you are presented with clear cut images; a dark brush stroke figure against a light sky, a flooded river rolling boulders downstream, a fire licking and eating the buildings as it spreads through Tombstone. As each layer is peeled away, magic slowly blossoming around the characters, dark secrets and hidden truths are revealed. Emma Bull has woven a spell binding story.

Territory has also given us wonderful characters to love. Jesse Fox is brilliant. Mildred with her eccentricity and solid good manners all rolled into one is enchanting. Ms. Bull’s Doc Holliday is truly inspired. The Earp brothers and their wives are by turns human and something so much more. This is everything a good fantasy novel should be and I cannot recommend Territory highly enough.

Stephen King Fans?

2007-09-26T14:07:00.000-07:00

Stephen King has a new book coming out in a January. Check out Mel Odom's Adventures in Writing for the latest news about it.

Digg Me!

2007-09-26T08:13:00.000-07:00

Anyone out there have a Digg account? Please go and vote for Romancing the eBook!

Romancing the eBook

2007-09-25T22:30:00.000-07:00

I’ve been doing reviews for almost a year now and in that time I have had more requests for eBook links to the novels I have reviewed than I can count. For one reason or another some readers do not have access to the book in its traditional format. I know that in India only the big names and bestsellers from America make it there. Sure, you can order a book online from the States or the UK but the shipping costs are enormous. If you could buy it online in an electronic format and spend less, why wouldn’t you?

Harlequin recently announced that all new titles from their publishing house will be available as eBooks. Harlequin is the first major publisher to offer their entire front-list in this easy and accessible format. Harlequin, known for their romances of every kind, publishes more than 120 titles a month. And besides all the titles that will be in print Harlequin is also doing eBook exclusives.

The Harlequin imprints include Silhouette, Spice, Mira, HQN, Kimani Press, Steeple Hill, Red Dress Ink, Luna, and Worldwide Library. What I really love about Harlequin is that they offer everything to fit any kind of taste. Whether you want something a bit steamier, a love story that will make you search your soul, paranormal romance or fantasy, or even an action adventure that engages your mind — Harlequin really does it all.

I’ve recently read some of Harlequin’s releases and I’ve got nothing but good things to say about what they are printing. The Reincarnationist, M.J. Rose’s latest suspense offering based around the idea of reincarnation, was a fantastic read. I’ve also read a novel from their Bombshell line, Storm Force by Meredith Fletcher and it was great. The Rogue Angel series by Alex Archer, published under Worldwide Library, is another series worth looking into. If you’re looking for some kick butt action, look no further than Destiny, the first of the series.

You will never run out of things to read with Harlequin and now that they are offering their novels in an electronic format they are only more accessible. So if you can’t get the titles you want in their traditional format or just need something for your Palm Pilot, look no farther than their eBook Boutique.

An Interview with Alma Alexander, Author of the Worldweavers Trilogy

2007-09-24T08:22:00.000-07:00

I recently read Gift of the Unmage by Alma Alexander, the first book in her Worldweavers trilogy. Galethea Winthrop, Thea for short, is the main character in this great new young adult series about a girl who has lived her whole life under the shadow of magical expectations. But with the failure to come into her magical ability, whole new worlds open up for Thea. Ms. Alexander took the time to answer some questions about her series, writing, reading, and even the World Science Fiction and Fantasy Convention.

___________________________________________________________
In a market that is dominated by fantasy books that have central characters who are powerful magic users you have created a character who is magic-less to an extent. What is Thea’s appeal?

My editor once said that she is EveryTeen. I think her appeal lies in the simple fact that she is not a superheroine from the word go. She is, on the contrary, a complete misfit in her world - or at least so it seems, on the surface. This is something that most kids will resonate to - there are times that even high school clique queens feel lonely and outcast, it is part of being a teenager, your moods and your hormones and your world views change with the moon (or so it appears to the outside world) and that's fine, it's normal, it's expected, it's all a part of growing up and growing into an adult personality and form. Thea doesn't get presented with her solutions on a silver platter -- she has to work to first understand her problems, and then on how best to make things better -- but although she is given help along the way it is she herself who eventually makes her own choices and solves her own problems. Sometimes being a powerful magic user just isn't enough - you have to learn something first, often something hard, before anything you do or think or feel has importance or weight or meaning.

In Worldweavers you have done such a wonderful job of weaving into your story Native American myths and legends. What drew you to those myths vs. the traditional European myths that most stories use for a base?

Few people know about them. I guess that's a double-edged sword because readers will instinctively gravitate to the familiar, and the well-trodden paths of European mythology are far easier to travel on than the thorny thickets of the unknown. But American kids are not European kids, and America has its own treasure box of mythology, and it's been barely cracked; and there are so many wonderful tales here, so many extraordinary characters, so much joy and drama and tragedy. All this is all the more powerful because it is so new and unknown - but also, there is the added bonus that these myths and legends are far more a part of an American young reader's heritage than Rumpelstiltskin is. Or they should be, anyway. This is what this country's mythological roots are.

Having said that, however, I do weave in a few Eastern European folk tales into these books towards the end, too. It is a big, wide, wonderful world out there, and it's full of stories.

How did you get started writing young adult fiction? Do you prefer it to adult?

These particular books had their start when I attended a YA panel at the 2002 World Fantasy Convention in Minneapolis. At the time I had no plans to enter the YA market, and certainly no ideas in that field, but the panel had several writers on it whom I really like reading and who do write YA fiction - Charles de Lint was one of them, and Jane Yolen another. Some five or ten minutes into the panel, someone from the audience brought up Harry Potter, and Jane Yolen sighed and said, "I was wondering how long it would be before that particular elephant walked into the room." She said she wasn't entirely happy about the way that the Potter books treated girls... and I was off and running. I didn't really hear the rest of that panel, I was too busy getting to know Thea in my head, and thinking about the Last Ditch School for the Incurably Incompetent to which she would be sent because she was not the Boy Who Lived but instead the Girl Who Couldn't.

My primary goal has always been story - and that doesn't change with the level of the intended reading audience. I believe that the YA readers deserve, and want, stories that are just as complex and layered as an "adult" book - and I believe that these young minds are quicker, more agile, and far better equipped to actually deal with a certain amount of complexity. I have no interest in providing something simplistic, or characters who have only two dimensions and would flap in the wind like so many flags. I want real characters, real people. The fact that I have magic in my story doesn't make my characters any less real, it just gives them a different set of problems.

I don't prefer either genre to the other. They complement each other, rather than square off as antagonists.

What was one of your favorite books growing up? Do you think that it has affected your writing?

One of my favourite books? ONE of? That's hardly fair, asking a question like that of someone who spent her formative years buried between book covers of many many MANY books. I'd have to put Tolkien's Lord of the Rings up there - but then I'd have to ignore authors like Ursula le Guin, and Madeleine L'Engle, and Lloyd Alexander, and CS Lewis, and... look, see what you've done now?...

Reading has affected my writing, the fact that I read a lot and widely and that I am completely, wholly and incurably in love with language and with story. Reading told me early on that I wanted to write, too, because I wanted to create more of these worlds which held me so spellbound when they flowed from other minds and other visions. Reading a lot and reading widely is probably the best basic education that a child can get. God bless libraries everywhere.

I know that recently you were in Japan for the World Science Fiction Convention. What was that like?

Japan was weird and wonderful and I came back with 800+ photographs, ranging from the bizarre to the astonishingly beautiful; I'd highly recommend going to a truly alien place at least once in a person's lifetime, it definitely stretches your horizons.

There are parts of Europe that are staggering under the weight of their history, and the same is true in Japan, where you wander around temples and palaces built not hundreds but thousands of years ago, and the idea that there were once these people so far removed from us in time who lived and loved and worked and fought and played within these walls and in these gardens is eerie, enigmatic, and one that fills me with awe and curiosity. One of the gardens I was in had in it a weirdly-shaped pine that once been a Shogun's cherished bonsai and which had been planted into the ground some 600 or so years before when the Shogun died - it's quite a feeling, watching this centuries-old tree and wondering what tales it could tell if only it could talk...

Modern Japan is utterly confounding - it was the first time I had ever been to a country where I was functionally illiterate without benefit of translation or at least transliteration on signposts and information boards, and that was disconcerting. But the Japanese are resigned to wandering foreigners who look lost and bewildered and somehow knowing how to say "hello" and "thank you" and a lot of sign language gets you almost everything you need without any major dramas. And people bow to each other. A lot. And it's catching; upon our return home, a friend I was traveling with informed me that she had given that formal little Japanese bow to a completely astonished British bank teller, and I offered one of my own to the quietly amused passport checkpoint official when I stepped off my flight on my return to the United States.

The second book in the Worldweavers trilogy hits stores March 2008. Can you give us a little hint about Spellspam and what the future holds for our favorite characters?

What happens if the spam that hits your inbox on a regular basis isn't just annoying - but carries live and potentially dangerous magic spells which affect you if you so much as read the spam message? What happens if the spam message offering you "the clearest skin you could ever imagine" turned your skin... transparent? (Well, actually, that's the first scene in Spellspam - when you read the book, you'll find out exactly what transpires...)

An epidemic of such spellspam sweeps Thea's world, affecting the one thing that has been thought until then to be completely impervious to magic - the computers. And since Thea seemed to be the first person ever to have been able to actually use computers in her own magic (something that's explored in Gift of the Unmage), she now needs to find out where this spellspam is coming from because it can only mean that there is someone else out there who is not that much different from herself. There are some hard choices for Thea to make in the course of this book, which takes her further along the road of discovering who she really is, and how truly extraordinary her gifts are. But where this road will ultimately take her... is another story, one which concludes the Worldweavers trilogy, and which will follow Spellspam in the spring of 2009.

The future is wide open for Thea, actually. There are far more things that begin to be possible for her now than she has ever dreamed of. These stories may yet be told, if she finds friends who want to know more about her.

Thank you so much for taking the time to answer some questions!

'An Infamous Army' by Georgette Heyer

2007-09-24T04:04:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 1402210078
Format: Paperback, 436pp
Publisher: Sourcebooks, Incorporated
Price: $14.95

An Infamous Army, originally published in 1937, is centered around the famous battle of Waterloo, the final battle of the Napoleonic Wars. This historical novel gives you an amazingly detailed account of the final battle in which Wellington and his allied forces lost 22,000 of their troops and the French losses totaled over 25,000. Leading up to that point Georgette Heyer (1902-1974), author of over 50 novels set in the Regency period, paints a vivid picture of life in Brussels, a city that is just a few miles away and living life to the fullest with the threat of war looming on the horizon.

The novel takes its title from a famous quote of Wellington’s, “I have an infamous army; very weak and ill-equipped, and a very inexperienced staff.” But despite this crusty remark the battle was won, and the war was won with this infamous army of his.

Lady Barbara Childe, Bab for short, is as gorgeous as she is wicked. A widow known to be rather infamous herself, Bab is referred to as ‘the incomparable, the dashing, the fatal Barbara’ because wherever she goes she leaves a trail of broken hearts in her wake. But despite this, or because of it, Colonel Charles Audley, Wellington’s aid-de-camp, falls madly in love with her at first sight and soon proposes.

With the backdrop of the coming war Bab and Charles announce their engagement to the disbelief of many, including Charles’s sister Judith, though it is not a surprise to her husband, Lord Worth. As the weeks pass and Napoleon marches closer, Bab cannot seem to drop the wild aspects of her personality. She does everything she wishes, everything that exposes herself and her newly betrothed Charles to gossip, including almost breaking up the marriage of the close friend of the Worth family.

But Lady Barbara, as the reader and Charles know, has a good heart beneath all her wild behavior. She is a strong character, likable and vibrant. Charles in turn is everything you would expect of an English gentleman and the interaction between the two is delightful. When the battle finally does break out, Bab rises to the occasion, doing everything she can helping wounded men and showing a strength and gentleness of character you always knew was there.

From the beginning to the end, what makes An Infamous Army so easy to read is the flawless style. Each moment is brought out and shown to the reader in all it’s brutal glory. Every episode is mesmerizing: The men leaving a ball when the news arrives that Napoleon is just a few miles away, the soldiers forming their ranks and calling out their battle cry, the sound of the cannons heard for the first time by the residents of Brussels, and even the small conflicts between the characters as they must learn to live with or without each other.

Never has history been more exciting than within the pages of An Infamous Army. The social drama with its romance lightens the almost overwhelming details of which general commands which regiment, troop movements, and battle strategies. The final chapters dedicated to the battle itself are horrific as well as heart-wrenching as the deaths of the soldiers and their horses are described. I have never read a better or more powerful piece of historical fiction.

2007-09-23T12:08:00.000-07:00

This is the to to be read pile next to the bed. See! It really does go all the way to the ceiling. Unfortnately this is only one of many stacks around my house. And that's my cat Newt. But since it's been a slow weekend I thought I would share. What do you have in your to be read stack right now?

Posts Worth Reading Today

2007-09-21T13:06:00.000-07:00

Over at Blogcritics there are two reviews worth taking a look at. Jill Hart read and reviewed Just Jane- A Novel of Jane Austens Life by Nancy Moser. Then Gorden Hauptfleisch read and reviewed Bridge of Sighs by Richard Russo.

Other places that have good posts today include Nothingman, although his is a post from Saturday it's still worth reading, Eyes of the Dodo.

Sevenine has a review up of Seeing Redd, the second book in The Looking Glass Wars.

And if you have never wandered over to The Trouble Clef today is the day to do so. Roo is such a great writer and at the moment he is covering some of his favorite bad music videos of all time.

SciFiChick has a review up of a science fiction novel called Ragamuffin, I have not read it myself but it does look good.

And if your still looking after that go here: Nouveaublogger, MiniJonB, Dingobear Photography, and PostSecret. All of these by the way are on the blogroll and there are many other sites and blogs worth checking out. Don't stop at the links above, go out and explore.

Return to Me

2007-09-20T11:00:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0425215415
Format: Paperback, 272pp
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
Price: $14.00

I was browsing online and this cover caught my eye. It's a great cover, the black and white with the deep red is fantastic. Then I read the little blurb and caught the word vampire. Now I have to read it!

From the Publisher:

Betrayed by her uncle, the magically inclined Lady Gabrielle Wentworth has been sold into a betrothal with a man who will surely be her ruin. To survive-and to avoid being labeled as a witch-she must accept the help of a five-hundred-year-old vampire who's as dangerous to her chaste body as he is to her fragile heart.

The Quiet Girl

2007-09-19T14:29:00.001-07:00

ISBN: 0374263698
Format: Hardcover, 424pp
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (October 30, 2007)
Price: $26.00

I saw this one while looking around today. It sounds like it might be pretty good. It is the same author that wrote Smilla’s Sense of Snow which I've heard all sorts of good things about but never read. Anyone read that one?

From the Publisher:

Set in Denmark in the here and now, The Quiet Girl centers around Kaspar Krone, a world-renowned circus clown with a deep love for the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, and an even deeper gambling debt.

Wanted for tax evasion and on the verge of extradition, Krone is drafted into the service of a mysterious order of nuns who promise him reprieve from the international authorities in return for his help safeguarding a group of children with mystical abilities—abilities that Krone shares.

When one of the children goes missing, Krone sets off to find the young girl and bring her back, making a shocking series of discoveries along the way about her identity and the true intentions of his young wards.

The result is a fast-paced, philosophical thriller blending social realism with the literary fantastic and pitting art and spirituality against corporate interests and nothing less than the will to war by the industrialized world. The Quiet Girl is a masterful, inventive novel that marks the triumphal return of one of the great writers of the international literary world.

2007-09-19T01:23:00.000-07:00

I'm 164 pages in to the 485 pages of An Infamous Army by Georgette Heyer. If you are an Austen fan then this would be perfect after you've set down Emma. It's a little hard to get into it but once you start it is just so hard to put down. The cover says it is a novel of 'love, war, Wellington, and Waterloo' and it's great. First published in 1937 this latest reprint is being done by Sourcebooks.

The main romance centers around Lady Barbara Childe, a wild widow and Colonel Charles Audley, a very proper upstanding gentleman. He proposes to her almost as soon as he meets her and she finds that she can't resist him. Oh, be still my beating heart!

speaking of vampires

2007-09-19T01:13:00.000-07:00

Here is the cover for the third instalment of the Gardella Vampire Chronicles by Colleen Gleason. Pretty isn't it? But this series isn't just about pretty book covers. From the kick butt and take no prisoners heroine to the brooding dark and handsome vampire hunter this series is different from most of the other vampire fiction you are going to come across. In this series the vampires really are the bad guys, no ifs ands or buts about it. The release date for this one isn't until Feb. 5, 2008. More than enough time to catch up on the rest of the series while your waiting.

Check out my review of the first book in the series, The Rest Falls Away, and the second book, Rises the Night. Also I got a chance to speak with Ms. Gleason right before her second book came out and you can read that interview here.

Morganville Vampires

2007-09-18T01:04:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0451222385
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 256pp
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
Price: $5.99

I'm a sucker for anything with a vampire in it. (Get it? Sucker? Ok, I know I'm a weirdo)I've been reading The Morganville Vampire series by Rachel Caine. It's a young adult series and while it isn't Twilight it still makes for pretty good reading. The third book in the series will be out in October and try as I might I can't seem to find a contact to get a free copy. Darn it. I guess I'll just have to break down and buy my own.

Read my reviews of the first two in the series. Glass Houses and Dead Girls' Dance.

From the Publisher:

Claire Danvers's college town may be run by vampires but a truce between the living and the dead made things relatively safe. For a while. Now people are turning up dead, a psycho is stalking her, and an ancient bloodsucker has proposed private mentoring. To what end, Claire will find out. And it's giving night school a whole new meaning.

'Seeing Redd' by Frank Beddor

2007-09-17T09:18:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0803731558
Format: Hardcover, 384pp
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
Price: $17.99

All the characters from The Looking Glass Wars are back in Frank Beddor's sequel, Seeing Redd. When we last saw Alyss, Dodge, Hatter, Molly and everyone else, they were all settling in happily to a Wonderland with out the tyranny of Redd, who escaped through the Heart Crystal with her deadly assassin, The Cat.

But all is not well in Wonderland when we return. Even with Redd out of the picture, Alyss has enemies. There will always be a few who prefer Black Imagination over White and those few are making trouble for Alyss. Not to mention King Arch of the Borderlands, who with his masculine superiority, believes that no woman, least of all Alyss, is fit to rule a kingdom.

After a mysterious explosion in the Crystal Continuum, Wonderland's form of transportation, Alyss is informed by King Arch that her bodyguard, Molly, has been taken hostage. King Arch claims to be only an intermediary for the real criminals, but Alyss suspects the truth. Arch explains that Hatter Madigan is to come out and negotiate Molly's release. Despite Alyss' direct order that he is to stay in Wonderland, Hatter makes his way into Borderland intent on freeing Molly.

Meanwhile, Redd and The Cat have made it to Earth through the Heart Crystal where Redd gathers an army made of ex-Wonderland citizens and those few Earthlings that have powerful Black Imagination. There she picks up a few shudder-worthy characters including Alistaere, a mad doctor who performs autopsies on people before they die, Siren, a women who can cripple people with the force of her voice, Sacrenoir, a man able to raise flesh eating skeletons, and Vollrath, a member of the tutor species that took a dark turn. With these and many others in tow Redd makes her way back to Wonderland to reclaim the throne from Alyss.

With all this going on around her, Alyss is desperate to make time for Dodge. Most of the hate and bitterness that colored Dodge's life before is gone and Alyss is determined to protect him from the destructive nature of his emotions. Their romance has blossomed and they are just as in love with each other as they were when they were young. But as determined as Alyss is to protect Dodge, he is just as determined to have his revenge on The Cat for killing his father.

With enemies pouring in from all directions at once Alyss must make a difficult decision, Hatter Madigan must deal with his personal life, Dodge must learn to conquer his emotions, and all Redd wants to do is take over the kingdom. Since this is the second in a trilogy there is a bit of a cliffhanger ending. A sort-of tie is called in the final battle and the fight postponed for a later date. What does the future hold for our favorite and not-so-favorite characters? I guess we will have to wait and see.

Seeing Redd moves just as quickly as The Looking Glass Wars. Constant action and intrigue move the reader forward at a break-neck pace. It is just as bloody and gruesome as the first, if not more so. The fight for Wonderland continues, the game hasn't changed, and the players are all more determined than ever to come out on top.

My Love Affair with the Novel

2007-09-15T19:19:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite memories is of my Dad reading The Lord of the Rings to me when I was about five. Of course the images I formed in my imagination didn’t match up once I read it on my own seven years later. But sitting quietly, listening to the soothing rhythm of my Dad’s voice as he read and peeking over his hands at the page, it was the start of one of the most positive things in my life.

Of course like all love affairs, it's had its ups and downs. In school they diagnosed me with a reading disability and I spent years sitting through classes meant to help me improve my reading level; most of the time I was bored and unhappy.

The schools also had a program called Accelerated Reader which listed certain books for points; you took a test once you finished reading and were awarded points according to your test score. As part of the reading program in elementary and junior high school you had to have a minimum of points each month. I hated that program because the books I enjoyed were never part of it and I had a hateful teacher who wouldn’t accept anything that wasn’t on the approved list.

My affair with the novel also suffered through high school as I found that reading cut into my extracurricular activities. Wonderful things such as sneaking out to parties, getting drunk, and ditching school left me little time to enjoy a good book. But when I found myself grounded I would always turn to an old favorite. Jane Austen, Anne McCaffrey, Patricia C. Wrede, Oscar Wilde, and J.R.R. Tolkien were stacked next to my bed. Even if I wasn’t reading much I carried a book in my purse, nestled next to my diary. I was armed against the world that way, prepared for doctor's waiting rooms and bus stops.

I found myself reading much more as I got older, past the hormonal rages of my teens. It didn’t drive me crazy any more to sit at home on a Friday night and read like it once had. I devoured novels: fantasy, mystery, horror, science fiction, the classics, chick-lit, histories, fiction, memoirs, and biographies. I started to read three and four a week, always on the hunt for the next good thing.

The problem with my love affair at the moment is that it has started to border on the obsessive, which is never healthy. I’ve filled the tiny apartment I share with my husband and two cats with books. Stacked three deep on bookshelves, piled on table tops, flowing along the top of the dresser, and piled so high on my bedside table, they reach the ceiling. I have a lot of books.

I’ve read a little over half and the rest are titles that I saw in bookstores, thrift stores, garage sales, antique malls, and anywhere else I can find them — I just had to have them. I buy them and plan to read them, and I will read them I tell myself firmly, but there is always another cover that catches my eye; another story line that seems to grab my attention.

The saying is true, so many books and so little time. Depending on your beliefs there is an afterlife. Can we read once we are dead? I sure hope so.

'The Devil’s Right Hand' by Lilith Saintcrow

2007-09-14T09:28:00.001-07:00

ISBN: 0316021423
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 391pp
Publisher: Orbit
Price: $6.99

Dante is back in The Devil’s Right Hand, the third book in the Dante Valentine series by Lilith Saintcrow. After everything Dante has faced, the horrors of Rigger Hall, the death and rebirth of Japhrimel, and the very final passing of Jace Monroe, you would think that things couldn’t get any worse. But you would be wrong.

The Devil isn’t done with Dante. He’s been calling her for a long time and he’s tired of waiting for her answer. Dante has spent time recovering from her final battle in Rigger Hall away from Saint City, Japhrimel never very far away. She’s had time to relax and isn’t walking around with her sword in her hand all the time, an amazing thing for her. But when the Devil calls, you can’t ignore him forever.

The Devil contracts Dante as his new Right Hand. She has seven years to hunt down and kill four demons that have escaped from the bowels of hell. In return Japhrimel is given back his full demon powers and the Devil promises protection for Dante for all eternity. But he isn’t called the Father of Lies for nothing.

As Dante gets her first taste of battle since her near defeat by Mirovitch she realizes that she might be in over her head. She has become a pawn in the Devil’s game and he wasn’t kind enough to share the rules first. But it isn’t like Danny Valentine to back away from a fight and at the end of the day it is still one of the things she does best. With a new blade at her side, the first one lying broken at the bottom of the ocean, Dante wonders if she carries a blade that could kill the Devil.

One of the things that I’ve really enjoyed so far about this series is that with each book you get to see Dante and Japhrimel’s relationship evolve. All along Dante has treated Japhrimel like a human, no different from how she treats everyone else in her life. Dante seems to forget that Japhrimel is not a man but a demon and she receives a grim reminder of this fact.

Dante is also haunted by her past. Jace’s voice echoes through her mind, she sees his ghostly figure in a bar that he never visited in life, and once faced with a grown Eve all Dante can think about is her deceased friend and lover Doreen. It is a hard, hurtful past that she can’t put behind her, something that makes her more human despite the fact that she isn’t quite human anymore.

While you could pick this one up and enjoy it out of sequence with the rest of the novels I would recommend you start with Working for the Devil, the first book in the series. At this point there is just too much story, and while you would be able to pick it up along the way, wouldn’t you rather get to know Dante and Japhrimel from the beginning?

SciFiChick read and reviewed this one as well as Book Fetish

who is your favorite young adult author?

2007-09-13T09:02:00.000-07:00

A recent survey posted over at The Guardian shows that Roald Dahl is the favorite young adult author among people ages 16 to 34. While I have to admit to having a certain fondness for Dahl and his wonderful creations, C.S. Lewis, for me at least, will always hold the number one spot in my heart.

I remember reading A Horse and His Boy for the first time and how I longed to have a talking horse take me for an adventure. The list below is the top ten authors from the survey, is your favorite among them? What books did you read and love growing up?

Roald Dahl
C.S. Lewis
J.M. Barrie
J.K. Rowling
Anthony Horowitz
Jacqueline Wilson
Dr. Seuss
Philip Pullman
Francesca Simon
Enid Blyton

Re-releasing Jane Austen

2007-09-11T07:28:00.001-07:00

Lately Jane Austen has been everywhere. Her novels, which have always been well loved, have experienced a sort of comeback. Of course I never thought they went away. But with the recent movie based on Jane Austen's life, which didn't follow her life very closely I'm told, and the titles that have been released using her characters or even just loosely based around her novels seemed to fill the summer. It seems as if anything Austen is golden at the moment.

This month Vintage/Anchor, an imprint of Knopf and Random House, got in on the game by releasing the classic novels with new covers. Gav did a post that was similar the other day, Vintage is releasing old titles with new covers in the UK as well. But I thought I would share the new Austen covers with you. They are lovely, similar in style to a 1800's fashion plate, which they could very well be.

ISBN: 030738683X
Format: Paperback, 256pp
Publisher: Knopf Publishing Group
Price: $6.95

ISBN: 0307386848
Format: Paperback, 512pp
Publisher: Knopf Publishing Group
Price: $7.95

ISBN: 0307386880
Format: Paperback, 496pp
Publisher: Knopf Publishing Group
Price: $6.95

ISBN: 0307386856
Format: Paperback, 272pp
Publisher: Knopf Publishing Group
Price: $5.95

ISBN: 0307386864
Format: Paperback, 384pp
Publisher: Knopf Publishing Group
Price: $7.95

'Something from the Nightside' by Simon R. Green

2007-09-10T09:50:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0441010652
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 230pp
Publisher: Ace
Price: $6.99

Something from the Nightside is the first in Simon R. Green’s Nightside Series, a group of books based around John Taylor, a private detective that has a gift for finding lost things.

John has been living in London for five years when Joanna Barett, a rich business woman, asks him to find her missing daughter Cathy. She has one clue, Nightside. John left the Nightside, swearing never to go back, but he’s a sucker for someone in need and agrees to find the girl for a hefty price. The one condition Joanna has is that she gets to go along.

The Nightside is a square mile in the middle of London, except that it’s bigger than that, and it’s always three in the morning. All kinds live there: myths, monsters, dreams, and a few seemingly normal people just passing through. It’s where you go to find the things that can only live in the dead of night.

John, who’s name is still spoken of in the Nightside, goes back to one of his old haunts to collect some information on the missing girl. In Strangefellows, a bar that has been open since the beginning of time, John runs into one of his old friends, Razor Eddie, the Punk God of the Straight Razor. Except that in the Nightside things are not always what they seem and friends are not always friends. From there, it’s a wild ride through the dark streets in search of Cathy.

Simon R. Green fills the book with characters that really stand out. From Razor Eddie to Suzie Shooter, better known as Shotgun Suzie, and even John himself; these characters are never quite what they seem, just like the Nightside. John’s past is hinted at, but nothing really solid comes through. I’m hoping in the future books you learn more about his past and why his name is remembered, for one reason or another, by everyone in the Nightside.

Something from the Nightside is a quick horrific novel. From insects exploding out of a man’s body to faceless men with hypodermic needles for fingers, this novel is filled with images straight from your darkest nightmares. Throw in a little noir style and dark rich atmosphere, and you have one heck of a read.

'Dead Man Rising' by Lilith Saintcrow

2007-09-09T09:15:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 031600314X
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 380pp
Publisher: Orbit
Price: $6.99

When I finished Working for the Devil I immediately picked up Dead Man Rising, the second book in the Dante Valentine series. It picks up with Dante and Jace almost a year after the events of the previous book.

Dante has thrown herself into tracking down bounties with the death of Japhrimel still haunting her. The mark on her shoulder, Japhrimel’s name branded into her skin, has started to burn again after the long period of cold. Jace, who followed her back to Saint City from Nuevo Rio after she finished the Santino case, is working with her and trying to keep her alive. The real reason he is there remains unspoken between them — his love for her, despite the fact that she is still in love with a dead demon.

With the changes made to her body when Japhrimel changed her, Dante isn’t aging like the people around her. She sees the signs in Jace’s eyes with their crow's feet and dark circles, the few strands of grey running through Gabe’s dark hair, and lines around Eddie’s mouth. Dante wonders if once they are gone, once there is no one to remember how she was before, if she will be dead then, too.

When Gabe, one of Dante’s closest friends and a fellow necromancer, contacts her about a case, Dante can’t refuse. She feels honor-bound to help Gabe out despite the fact that she would rather not pick at old wounds. Psions, people with magical ability, are being brutally murdered and the one clue they have to go on leads to a past that Dante doesn’t want to remember.

Rigger Hall, the place of long buried memory, is somehow connected to the recent deaths. Dante grew up in Rigger Hall, an orphanage and school for those gifted with magical ability, which was run by the sadistic headmaster Mirovitch. That was years ago; Rigger Hall is closed and Mirovitch long dead, but deep down Dante knows the past isn’t going to stay buried.

With Jace refusing to leave her side and Japhrimel’s voice echoing in her head, Dante faces the horrors of her past. The Devil makes another appearance and asks a question that sparks hope in Dante, “Can it be you have not resurrected him?” But Dante knows better than to trust the Devil, the Father of Lies, and pushes his question away to concentrate on the killer roaming Saint City.

There is a lot of depth to these books. They aren’t just straight, mindless fantasy; the characters are dark, broken, and then sewn together with pure determination. Dante’s childhood, which she must face, is practically gruesome although there are other characters who have had it worse.

Dead Man Rising is dark, gritty, urban fantasy at its best. But what made it even better is the fact that it is the continuing tale of a character who is unforgettable. If you read these out of order you would completely miss the building momentum, the small things that add up to create a series that is truly fantastic.

'Working for the Devil' by Lilith Saintcrow

2007-09-07T01:19:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0316003131
Format: Mass Market Paperback, 384pp
Publisher: Orbit
Price: $6.99

Working for the Devil is the first in a five book series covering the life and times of Dante Valentine.

Dante, Danny for short, is the kind of character you can really sink your teeth into. A katana-wielding Necromancer, Dante doesn't take crap from anyone. Tough, smart, and deadly, she's built a reputation for herself in Saint City. She's one of the best, maybe even the best, and that is why one rainy day the Devil asks for her help.

The Devil has a job for Dante and he isn't going to let her refuse. A demon has escaped from hell with something very precious - an egg that, if opened, could mean an apocalypse for Earth. For Dante the job is even harder to turn down once she learns that the demon she will be hunting is the same one that almost killed her a few years before. The demon, Santino, had also killed her friend Doreen and Dante feels honor bound to hunt him down. Japhrimel, the Devil's right hand demon and most deadly assassin, is made Dante's familiar and protector.

Driven by a dark past that is only hinted at in Rigger Hall and the brutal murder of Doreen, Dante checks with her contacts in Saint City for any sign of Santino. Japhrimel is always a few steps away and at first Dante is uneasy about having the demon shadowing her. But after awhile the feel of his dark aura and his cinnamon smell become as familiar to her as her own skin.

Dante gets help, whether she wants it or not, from her Necromancer and cop friend Gabriele, Gabe's hedgewitch boyfriend Eddie, and ex-lover Jace who just happens to have ties to the Mob. Not to mention the demon. They follow Santino to Nuevo Rio where the hunters become the hunted.

One of the things that really stood out about this book was the world. The technology is advanced (think Blade Runner) and the mix of floating cars and laser guns with ancient Egyptian gods and swords fit perfectly. It's complicated and not everything is explained in depth. Things are just mention in passing, thrown at you and either you catch it or you don't. But this isn't a problem, it only adds to the feeling of reality, as Dante fights her way toward Santino and the egg.

Based in a world full of advanced technology and ancient magic, Working for the Devil is a dark urban fantasy that reaches out and grabs you by the throat. It is one kick butt start to what I'm sure will turn out to be one of the better series around. If Dante Valentine isn't on your reading list, you're missing out.

SciFiChick read and reviewed this one too...

writing murder...

2007-09-06T11:59:00.000-07:00

Have you heard about the Polish author that was jailed for killing his ex-wife's lover? Yep. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison. Want to know how they found out about him killing this guy? He wrote about the murder in one of his books.

read the article at The Guardian...

2007-09-05T08:23:00.000-07:00

I read and reviewed Shoko Tendo's memior Yakuza Moon a few months ago. It is a book I still think about. I don't think that anyone, once they had read it, could forget it.

Yesterday I came across an article at Boston.com entitled Gangter daughter sheds light on Japan underworld. The whole article isn't about Ms. Tendo but parts of an interview she gave is used for it. There is also a great shot of her gorgeous tattoo. It's worth taking a look just for that.

'The Looking Glass Wars' by Frank Beddor

2007-09-04T18:12:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0803731531
Format: Hardcover, 384pp
Publisher: Penguin Young Readers Group
Price: $17.99

The Looking Glass Wars is a twist on Lewis Carroll's classic stories Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. With whimsical elements and a boost of modern technology, and playing on the idea that Wonderland is a real place, the author introduces us to Alyss Heart.

Alyss is the future Queen of Wonderland and is celebrating her seventh birthday when her evil aunt Redd attacks the Wonderland palace. The fight is bloody and soon Redd is in control of the kingdom.

With her mother's bodyguard, Hatter Madigan, Alyss escapes into the Pool of Tears, which takes her to 18th century London. Along the way Alyss and Hatter are separated. Alyss lives on the streets with a group of urchins, then in an orphanage, before finally finding a home with the very proper Liddells.

Along the way Alyss must come to terms with the idea that maybe she never was a princess; maybe Wonderland is a place she dreamed up after all.Alyss grows up and attracts the attention of Prince Leopold, whom she agrees to marry, but on the day of the wedding Queen Redd sends her deadly assassin, The Cat, through the Pool of Tears and into Alyss's new world.

Alyss is saved in the nick of time by her Wonderland childhood love Dodge Anders, and whisked back to Wonderland, only to find it changed under Redd's tyrannical rule. Alyss slips easily back into being a part of this magical world, something she tried so hard to deny in Britain, and is soon leading a band of rebels against the evil queen.

The Looking Glass Wars moves quickly, with almost constant action. From Wonderland to 18th century Britain Alyss faces dangers and one complicated situation after another. It's a hard book to put down, as something new is always happening, and it's original even with its basis in the classic story.

Alyss's adventures in Wonderland continue with Seeing Redd, the second in the series, which just hit shelves.

'The Reincarnationist' A Novel of Suspense by M.J. Rose

2007-09-03T18:43:00.000-07:00

ISBN: 0778324206
Format: Hardcover, 464pp
Publisher: Mira Books
Price: $24.95

With the The Reincarnationist, M.J. Rose has crafted a novel that is as interesting as it is entertaining. The idea of reincarnation is the backdrop in this thrilling story that blends mystery and suspense together for a gripping read. M.J. Rose has studied and based her story as much as possible on fact; she even provides a reading list once you've finished her haunting novel.

When we first meet Josh Ryder, a photographer on assignment in modern Rome, he is on the verge of surviving a terrorist explosion. Josh witnesses a security guard arguing with a woman pushing a stroller when his world disappears in a bright flash of light. He survives, barely, but the bombing changes everything about his life. Suddenly he can remember past life experiences; a pagan priest in Ancient Rome and a young man in the 1900's of New York City are suddenly tantalizingly familiar to him.

With his present in ruins Josh has become obsessed with figuring out a past that haunts him. He becomes a member of the Phoenix Institute, a group of researchers that collect evidence of past life experiences from children. One of more prominent members, Malachai, offers to help him in return for his services as a photographer. Josh becomes a sort of pet project for Malachai, who has never had past life experience himself and to a certain extent is jealous of Josh.

As a member of the Phoenix Institute Josh returns to Rome less than a year after the explosion to photograph a freshly discovered tomb. In the tomb are the mummified remains of a woman, a Vestal Virgin, who Josh remembers. She is the woman who has been haunting him and in a flash of memory he knows her name and remembers her scent. But who was Sabina?

Julius is the priest from Ancient Rome whose life Josh has been remembering. With those memories comes Sabina. Lovely and vivacious Sabina, even as a memory, over shadows all other women for Josh. Julius, however, is living in a time when Christianity is overthrowing the pagan religions that Rome has lived with for so long, and he has found a little happiness in Sabina's arms. Despite that, Josh feels as if there is some tragedy tinting these episodes.

Through the tomb Josh meets Gabriella Chase, a woman he is drawn to, and he wonders if she has some connection to his past. When the tomb is robbed of a precious artifact that can help a man remember his past, Josh is pulled into the race to recover it.

As the story unfolds the connections between the past and the present are revealed. M.J. Rose uses the idea that we reincarnate to make right the mistakes of previous lives to propel her characters forward; to make connections where someone else might only see coincidence. As a result, The Reincarnationist is an unforgettable novel that will leave you with questions about the mysteries of the soul.

National Book Festival

2007-08-31T11:32:00.001-07:00

The 2007 National Book Festival, organized and sponsored by the Library of Congress and hosted by First Lady Laura Bush will be held on Saturday, Sept. 29, 2007, on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., between 7th and 14th streets from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The festival is free and open to the public.

Check out the website!