Lists

I'm a huge fan of lists. They make me happy. Sometimes I even use them to get things done.  Yep, I'm one of those people. 100 little sticky notes, scraps of paper, messages and lists on my iPhone.....but most of them go unused. I just like the act of listing, mostly. What's all this listing babble leading to? Well you see the other day I stumbled across this website: 1001 Series. There are all sorts of greatest hits type lists here....1001 movies to see, 1001 childrens books to read, and my personal favorite 1001 books to read before you die.

 Now, with 1001 novels on the list there is no possibility of me ever getting done with the list. Plus, I've already read at least a dozen or so of the novels listed. But, I do think this would make an interesting personal growth challenge. Break me out of my reading bubble, so to speak. My current plan is to pick one novel from each of the letters. If I can finish them in this year, that would account for 26 novels. Not bad if I do say so.....especially as I'm sure there will be some novels that will just be play ole torturous for me to read.

So, what do you say? Anyone up for trying to expand your reading horizons with me?

Heart's Blood

Title: Heart's Blood
Author: Juliet Marillier
Genre: Fantasy, paranormal
Source: Public Library - Want for my own collection....please?

I absolutely loved this novel. I fell head over heels into the world of Whistling Tor and want to go back as soon as possible. For a moment, I seriously considered stealing this book from the library. My husband, who was absorbed in a video game most of the day, was able to surface long enough to tease me about being so absorbed in the book.


What I liked:

1. I'm a sucker for Medieval-ish settings. Give me knights, and lords, and ladies, Kings, and farmers...I'll be a happy girl. Throw in a bit of folklore and magic and it is nearly my perfect book.

2. I'd say about 90 % of the characters in this novel are flawed. They are broken mentally, physically, spiritually.....any way you can think of. Even the two main characters. And because of this they fit together perfectly.

3. While magic was a staple of the story and needed to occur, the actual thing that saved the day was love and hope. I adore this about Ms. Marillier's novels. Love and hope are always....always...the saving grace.

What I didn't like:

1. I'm not too keen on the cover. It's nice. It accurately portrays the main character and the story, but it....it just doesn't do it for me. I may be a bit biased though, as I love the American covers for the Sevenwaters Stories and the Bridei Chronicles.

Overall: I'm impressed. I really would love to own this book. It is everything I've come to expect from fantasy. You should try it! If you don't like it....send your copy to me. I'll treasure it!

(This novel qualifies for the fantasy reading challenge.)

Heir To Sevenwaters

Title: Heir to Sevenwaters (Follow up novel to the Sevenwaters Triology)
Author: Juliet Marillier
Genre: Fantasy
Source: Library, but want desperately to own

I had to read this one. There was no question. You see, for a long time I was under the impression that my favorite series of books was only a trilogy. Then bam! This one shows up...with the same great cover art and a wonderful continuation of the Sevenwaters' clan.

For those of you who haven't read any of the Sevenwaters books, might I suggest you do. Juliet Marillier has an enchanting way of mixing known fairy tales and faerie stories with Celtic folk lore, Druidic mysticism, magic, and romance. Each book in the series is about a different generation of the Sevenwaters clan and how they deal with the fae meddling in their lives (sometimes for good, sometimes for not so good). All are classic fairy tales with a challenge to overcome, but they are well and truly fleshed out and held up by interesting characters and a complex plot that tangles together over the generations. Each can be read on it's own, but they are definitely better as a whole.

What I liked about this book:
1. Just about everything. It is like a welcome home. I read and reread the first three books all the time, I'm glad the story doesn't stop there.

2. The cover art. I really like the style the American covers come with. Kind of old school fantasy, but they are exactly what I picture when I think of the different characters.

3. We get to meet the head mischief maker himself - Mac Dara in this one.

4. Love always wins.

What I didn't like:

1. This a plot thing: For a family that has generations of dealings with the Fae.....why don't they understand what's going on?!?! It was a bit frustrating, but I know it was meant to be. The story couldn't have moved on the way it did if everyone automatically believed. So not really a complaint.

2. Another not really a complaint, but I don't like that I didn't know that the series didn't stop at three. Not that I mind my favorite stories continuing, but now I have to think of something else to call the Sevenwaters Triology.

(This book is part of my fantasy reading challenge)

2010 Reading Challenges

Remember, If you can't be an athelete...be an atheletic supporter.  I was trying to come up with something clever to say about joining in, but that's the only thing that came to mind. It makes me wonder if there is a Grease reading challenge. I'm not going to go look for it though. I've already been making lists and looking at my schedule to try to guestimate which challenges I can join and won't kill myself trying to conquer. No deaths by books....just reading challenges.....because they're fun! This year I'm going to tackle these reading challenges:

The TBR Challenge. We all have that dreaded To Be Read pile that keeps growing and growing. Some of us even have over flowing bookshelves due to this pile. MizB is hosting this challenge that is designed to help clean up your bookshelves and lower the body count on that TBR list.  The challenge is to read 12 books that have been on your TBR list for over 6 months. That's one for each month....but you can do them all at once if you want. Follow one of the links to get the complete rules. I'll be making my list (which will come on a separate post) off of my shelved TBR list. It's only practical. I have an entire bookcase (well at least one...but more like two) that I've not read any of the books from. I must fix that.

I have read a lot of science fiction. At least one whole bookcase is filled with it. However, there are so many things that can be covered by the speculative fiction category, and my husband enjoys it as a genre and has a list all ready for me, plus there are a few new novels that would fit nicely into this category that I can't help but want to participate in this Speculative Fiction Challenge hosted by Book Chick City. How's that for one long, run-on sentence from the English teacher?

For this challenge I'm choosing the Enthusiast level which is 6 books from any of the categories. All the other rules and the category list are all on her site....but the most important is the list. I'll be making mine up as I go, so there will be a separate post to keep them all totaled.

The Royals Fantasy Reading Challenge is hosted by Royal Reviews. Fantasy isn't actually a big stretch for me. Fantasy novels are some of my favorites. However, I've been so caught up in the horror and paranormal romance genres lately that I've been letting some good ones slip past. Plus there are always fantasy series that I haven't discovered yet. I'm thinking this one will be a lot of fun!

I'm going to try the Addicted Level. Twelve books is totally doable, right? All the rules and things are on the site and like the speculative fiction challenge I'll be building my list as I go.

The Gilmore Girls Challenge! That's right. I spent a good portion of my college down-time t.v. watching on this show. Rory and Lorelei just make me happy. So therefore, I could not resist the bookish glee that happened when I stumbled across this challenge hosted by Lisa.

In the show, Rory is a very good student (high school and college), there are books and book referrences galore. A list, of all the books read or mentioned during the show,  has been compiled and the challenge is to read a set number of books from the different categories on the list.  I've chosen the Emily level. Just like the grand matriarch of the Gilmore clan....I'm going to be conservative.  The Emily level means I need to choose 5 books from at least 2 of the categories listed. This one will be tougher.  Like the two above, I'll be building my list as I go.

Fall Into Reading Wrap-up

The time has come for this challenge to come to a close. I'm a bit unsure of the outcome of my challenge.  When I posted my original reading list it looked something like this:

From the library:
1. Blood From Stone ~ Laura Anne Gilman
2. Dead If I Do ~ Tate Hallaway
3. Fragile ~ Shiloh Walker
4. Lords of Desire ~ Virgina Henley, Sally MacKenzie, Victoria Dahl, Kristi Astor
5. Would-Be Witch ~ Kimberly Frost
6. A Drop of Red ~ Chris Marie Green
7. Over My Dead Body ~ Michelle Bardsley

From my shelves:
8. Prom Nights From Hell ~ Meg Cabot, Kim Harrison, Michele Jaffe, Stephanie Meyer, Lauren Myracle
9. My Soul To Take ~ Rachel Vincent
10. Intertwined ~ Gena Showalter

For book clubs:
11. Never Cry Werewolf ~ Heather Davis (Blogs With Bite)
12. The Postmistress ~ Sarah Blake (Barnes and Noble First Look Club) DNF

  

Notice that some are crossed out, others aren't. I ran into a bit of a snag. I just kept finding more and more books that just had to be read. Some were replaced. Then others were replaced. Eventually the library called all the books back. I had to find more.  Here's were the conflict comes in. I did read 12 books. In fact, I read over twelve books in the challenge time...I read 20. Well, more like 19.5 ~ I didn't finish one of the books.

So here's the question: Does the fact that I read 19.5 books count as my completing this challenge? Does it count even though I didn't read all of the original 12 books on the list?

I think I'm going to count this as a draw. Completed but not perfect. Sound good?

More Sookie!

Title: Dead As A Doornail ~ Southern Vampire Series Book 5
Author: Charlaiine Harris
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Source: Library

This one is just a treat to read! Our darling Sookie has to deal with her brother changing, a real-life fairy godmother, Alcide using her ability as a psycic lie detector, and let's not forget about the new Pirate vampire.

That's right. You heard me.  Pirates and faeries! Bill is still on the outs, but takes every opportunity to try to kiss up to Sookie. Fangtasia has a new bartender who likes to buckle his swashes. Jason going through some changes. And oh yeah the Were world is in upheaval. I liked this one quite a bit, though I am a bit disappointed that Alcide is shaping up to be just as self-centered as Bill. *sigh* I am not disappointed that Sookie is still not giving him the time of day.

Title: Definitely Dead ~ Southern Vampire Series Book 6
Source: library

Hey, there's a tiger in this one! Ooops, I gave it away. Not really, I think the cover does that anyway. So Sookie has a whole host of guys....undead, were, and shifter falling for her. It's a bit frustrating that just by being Sookie she seems to be able to get every hot guy interested in her. Not just "hey, she's a looker" interested, but willing to take bullets and or die for her interested. The only thing that seems to be keeping this series from devolving into something akin to the Anita Blake series (ya know....less plot more sex) is that Sookie seems to be a one guy girl. She may have a whole bunch of ex's just waiting to help her out of trouble, but when she commits to one she commits.

Title: From Dead To Worse ~ Southern Vampire Series Book 8
Source: Library

Umm, yeah, not sure how I got out of order without noticing, but I did. There were a few moments right at the beginning where I thought that perhaps I'd missed something. There were references to wars that I'd only seen the beginning of ...which were now over. They should have been a sign I was actually out of order. On the flip side, the story was so engaging that nagging doubts only lasted a minute and then I was swept up into Sookie's world again. I think that's a testament to good story telling that information can be missing, but I still want to keep going and figure out what's happening next.  A lot happens in this novel, but in my opinion the most important thing to was meeting Sookie's great grandfather.....Niall the Fairy. Squee!

**All novels were read as part of the Sookie Stackhouse Reading Challenge.**

NaNoWriMo ~ NaNoReadMo Wrap Up

Do you know what day it is? It's November 30th.

That means your nanowrimo novels are almost due. Hopefully, you accomplished your writing goals. This is also the cut off for nanoreadmo. Did you participate? How'd your read challenge list go?

Personally, I achieved my goal.........just barely! Thanks to the wonderful brain candy Sookie Stackhouse novels. Without them I wouldn't have made it. But I'll take them. I set my goal at 5 and I made 5.5!

1/2. Finished second half of Intertwined

1. Dead if I Do

2. Queene of Light

3. Dead Until Dark

4. Club Dead

5. Dead to the World

********************

Also, if you're interested in what happens after NaNoWriMo, here is a list of nano novels that have been published. Now would be a great time to check out some of these authors!

Sookie Stackhouse or Southern Vampires or Brain Candy

I mentioned earlier (see last post) that I'd found a new form of brain candy. I had taken an obsessive jump into the Sookie Stackhouse series. I should have posted this right after that, but Thanksgiving and family took over, so book reviews were slid onto the back burner for  a bit.

Title: Living Dead in Dallas ~ Book 1 of the Southern Vampire series

I read this one quite a while ago. Had a great time with it, loved the light and fluffy tone it had, but couldn't get the others from the library....it was too popular and the wait line was so long I forgot for a while that I wanted them. Book one introduces us to Sookie and her world...the small southern town of Bon Temps. This town is chalk full of interesting characters, some of whom are also paranormals - vampires and shapeshifters. Sookie herself is an outcast for her special mind reading abilities.

Title: Dead Until Dark ~ Book 2 of the Southern Vampire series

This one was a bit different. I had read this one previously, but decided to reread as a review and to get my brain back into thinking about the series as books. You see, somewhere between the time I first read books one and two, I watched the first couple seasons of True Blood. Love it! But wow, talk about chopping up story lines and combining them in new and interesting ways. I spent most of my review time making mental comparisons between the books and the tv series. Book two leads into the key set-up for most of these books. Every story line is going to have a twist. There will be some huge thing that needs to be overcome, and in the process it may twist Sookie's world into a knot. Honestly, I don't remember if the Manead is in this one or if this is the book where Sookie faces off against the Fellowship of the Sun. One and two went so fast they have sort of mushed together in my brain to make one continual story. I still had fun reading it and it definitely got me back into the right mind set for the other books.

Title: Club Dead ~ Book 3 of the Southern Vampire series

Book three leads us into a place we haven't been before with Sookie. Willing romance with a shape shifter. Bill and Sookie are on the outs and through a series of events and requirements a la the vamps Sookie teams up with a werewolf Alcide. He's awesome! Romantic, sweet, honorable, and reliable. I love Alcide! Normally, I'm all for the vampires, but in this one it's Alcide all the way! I really hope there is a way for Alcide to play a large part in the tv series too!

Title: Dead to the World ~ Book 4 of the Southern Vampire series

I'm having a love / hate feeling about this novel. On the love side, this one is all about Eric. He is the vampire, in this series, that does it for me. So much more than Bill. Bill is too broody and posessive.  On the hate side, even though this novel is about Eric it isn't the true Eric. He's under a spell which is causing amnesia. This Eric is sweet and caring, but not the playboy that Eric traditionally is. I'm happy to have an Eric novel, but dislike that it has to happen by amnesia.  Amnesia always just feels like a cop-out to me. It leads to all sorts of dilemmas and arguements along the lines of "Is this Eric's true nature?" or "Does he remember anything that has happened?" and "Will he ever let on if he does?" In all it is frustrating and either a really good way to keep them entangled or it's a really bad way to get them together temporarily.


Overall:  Love this series! There is really no way to compare the book series to the tv series. They are two parts of the same whole...the characters you know and love from the books in a new and wonderful way.  These are quick reads full of fun, paranormals, and just a touch of intrigue. Yummy!

*All novels are by Charlaine Harris, of the paranormal romance genre, and were checked out from the library.*

** I read all four as part of the Sookie Stackhouse challenge.**

Intertwined

Title: Intertwined
Author: Gena Showalter
Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal, Romance
Source: I won this book several months ago in give away.


I'm bad at scheduling my reading. Just so you know. What does this have to do with the novel? Well, you see it sat on my shelves for months waiting to hop out of the to-be-read pile. Then I was supposed to read it as part of the Blogs With Bite book review, but I didn't start reading until the day the reviews were due. I had other books I wanted to finish. Plus with Halloween, and school, and yeah....busy. But finish it I did! Once I had time I was able to finish it easily. The story's title is a great description for how the various plot parts and character relationships connect. It was a fun and easy read that I thoroughly enjoyed.


Things I liked:

1. The main character, Aden,  has learned to cope with the literal voices in his head. He's seen as crazy or a bad kid because of his strange abilities, but really....what teen ager doesn't feel that way sometimes?

2. I like that the main character is trying to be good. So often we are given "bad kid" books that paint the teen in a negative, never wanting to be or do better light. Not so with this one.

3. Loved his female counterpart! Mary Ann negates his powers, brings him peace, and just by being friendlly attracts the protection and romantic thoughts of a werewolf.  Her story is actually much more interesting to me, even though I know that it is only this way when connected to the rest of the story. I really do hope we get to see more of her and her wolf in the next one.

4. Dracula! Ok, so the Grand Sire of Vamps doesn't actually make an appearance in this one, he is scheduled to. When the girl Aden lusts after is Dracula's daughter....well yeah, that should be a fun meet the family scene.

What I didn't like:

1. Some of the fights our hero goes through with other members of the group home are too easily resolved. They seem to be thrown in just to give the character something other than paranormal stuff to worry about and are treated as such. There doesn't seem to be any lingering conflicts or consequences to any of them.

2. The relationship Aden holds with vamp girl just creeps me out. He doesn't seem to actually do things of his own will when around her. While she says repeatedly she's not doing that, it just seem that way. But maybe things will get better when he's himself.

3. Speaking of becoming himself, one of the key plot points is getting the voices in Aden's head out and into their own bodies if possible. This is interesting, but the end result that I'm fearful of is that Aden won't have any powers or anything to make him interesting if the voices (and thereby all their abilities) are gone. I'm not saying this will happen; it's just what my brain seems to think is a possible end result. Please Ms. Showalter don't let this be so!

Overall:  Loved it! I was instantly drawn into the story and it never disappointed. This is one of those novels that is hard to put down and now I'm impatient to read the next.

** This book is also part of my Fall Into Reading challenge list and I'm counting it - sort of- in my NaNoReadMo list.  Only sort of due to reading half of it before November 1st.**

Would-Be Witch

Title: Would-Be Witch (Book 1 of the Southern Witch series)
Author: Kimberly Frost
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Source: Library

I originally picked this book off the shelves because of the series title - the Southern Witches. I'm going to admit to being easily amused here, but it made me happy to think we've had Southern Vampires and now we're onto Southern Witches. Also, will you look at the kitty on the cover. Who could resist having a wild cat (an ocelot to be exact) as their pet/familiar?

Things I liked:

1. The cat is awesome. Seriously. He kicks werewolf and redneck ass a couple different times throughout the story. Plus, I just have a thing for big cats. I'd love to have an ocelot of my own.

2. Tammy Jo has no idea what she is. She's really not interested in knowing....at least until she has to. But, it doesn't throw her off to learn of witches, ghosts, werewolves, vampires, etc.

3. The developing romance between Tammy Jo and Bryn Lyons. Although, he comes off as a snobby ass a couple of times, they have great chemistry. I really want to see where this is going and find out why the Lyons name is on the don't mess with list.


What I didn't like:

1. The down home, southern, red neck, good ole boy attitude most of the characters seem to have. Specifically, Tammy Jo's on again off again ex-husband, Zach. The I'm the male so therefore I know what you need lil lady attitude just rubs me the wrong way. He doesn't want to listen to her or believe her, but she damn well better do as he says. *grumble*

2. Apparently, (at least according to novels) all fabulous drag queens in the south are also African-American vampires. I don't really have a problem with this, but with the way the characters and dialogue treat this. Tammy lets a couple homophobic comments slip. I get the feeling it was meant to be comedic but just knocks my opinion of her down a few rungs. She can easily accept werewolves and magic, but has issues with people being gay?

3. Tammy Jo is constantly breaking the law......and it is alright. She breaks into houses, steals cars, and generally causes chaos. Luckily, she is sort of dating her ex-husband who also happens to be a cop. No charges are ever pressed. He threatens to throw her in jail a couple of times, but never does...in fact he usually helps her do whatever her next illegal act is going to be. I understand her situation is desperate, but baking a cake doesn't actually make up for stealing a car.

Overall:

Even with the story elements that bothered me, I devoured this novel. It was so much fun! I was a bit disappointed when it came to a close. It must be a sign I need to get a hold of book two.


**I read this as part of the Fall Into Reading challenge**

In honor of NaNoWriMo

November is notorious among readers and writers. National Novel Writing Month has seen to this. Each November readers, writers, and anyone else are challenged to write a novel (50,000 words) in one month. But then, you knew that didn't you?

Last year I participated for the first time. My husband has done NaNoWriMo for several years, and won most of them.......minus the one where he had to stop writing to help plan for our wedding. I had a great time. I was nervous as all get out. I'd never written a story before. I'm not a creative writer. I can research and write essays like nothing else, but fiction? I was in a whole new world. I loved it. I became obsessed with writng my story and beating the deadline. I won! That's right, I won...and walked away with a pile of words so terrible it doesn't deserve the title story let alone novel. I'm a terrible creative writer.

So, because of my ability to write terrible, awful, no one should ever be aware of its existence fiction, I thought I had better think of another way to show my support for NaNoWriMo and the actual writers who compete. Then it hit me. I am a significantly better reader than writer.

In November I will be reading in honor of those who write. I've even created a challenge. I'm challenging myself to read (completely, dnfs don't count) five novels in November. Five doesn't seem like all that many, but with life, work, and other distractions like tv / movies....five will be hard to reach.

CupK8 even created a button for it. (I did one too, but her's is much more interesting. I'm totally featuring it here.)


















I challenge you! If you aren't writing a novel this month, show your support for the writers. Without their skills we wouldn't have anything to read! If you'd like to participate, please leave a comment with a link to a blog post where you declare your support. Create and share your reading challenge for the month. Then get ready to read...we start tonight at 12:01 am Nov. 1st!

The Postmistress

Title: The Postmistress
Author: Sarah Blake
Genre: Historical fiction, women's lit
Source: Barnes and Noble First Look Book Club - I'm not expected to send it back.


I fell in love with this cover. When the book arrived I actually squeeled and petted the book. It has a great cover...colors, textures, all of it. Perfect.

That's where my adoration ended. I just can't get into this book. I like the idea of the story, but it just gets buried under the strikingly heavy descriptions of the war and the more-often-than-not confusing transitions between characters. I want to finish this so badly....but I just can't force myself through any more of it. I think this may be my first and last foray into the land of Barnes and Noble First Look books.


Synopsis from B&N:
The Postmistress is a sweeping novel about the loss of innocence of two extraordinary women-and of two countries torn apart by war.
On the eve of the United States's entrance into World War II in 1940, Iris James, the postmistress of Franklin, a small town on Cape Cod, does the unthinkable: She doesn't deliver a letter. In London, American radio gal Frankie Bard is working with Edward R. Murrow, reporting on the Blitz. One night in a bomb shelter, she meets a doctor from Cape Cod with a letter in his pocket, a letter Frankie vows to deliver when she returns from Germany and France, where she is to record the stories of war refugees desperately trying to escape.
The residents of Franklin think the war can't touch them- but as Frankie's radio broadcasts air, some know that the war is indeed coming. And when Frankie arrives at their doorstep, the two stories collide in a way no one could have foreseen. The Postmistress is an unforgettable tale of the secrets we must bear, or bury. It is about what happens to love during wartime, when those we cherish leave. And how every story-of love or war-is about looking left when we should have been looking right.

Covet -BWB Review

Title: Covet : A Novel of the Fallen Angels
Author: J.R. Ward
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Source: Library - which means I have to return it when I'm done. :(

I was a bit worried I wouldn't get this novel in time to participate in this round of reviews for Blogs With Bite, but luckily the Phoenix public library system rocks! They ordered enough copies that everyone on the wait list....and it was quite long....could get a copy the first round.

Now, onto the book. I'm just a little over halfway done, but I feel I can give an accurate review of the book and my experiences with it. Just wanted to let everyone know that.....plus, I fully intend on finishing this book. The epic battle between angels and demons is down to seven souls...who wouldn't want to know how this goes down?

What I like:
1. The underlying story of angels vs. demons is always one that is fascinating for me. Throw in some fallen angels and it becomes even more so.

2. I like that our hero is rough around the edges. He isn't perfect. He's dirty. He cusses. And honestly for most of the first part I wasn't sure which side he was supposed to be on. I'm still not entirely sure.

3. The sex scenes are quick, hard, and emotionless. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for steamy, hot, romantic love...but sometimes it just isn't that way. It fits these characters and the story well. Gushy romance just wouldn't feel right.

What I don't like:

1. I'm putting this here because it's more negative than positive, but it's not really bad: I had some trouble getting into the story. I believe it is due to the writing style. I haven't read any of Ward's other books so I'll have to look into this. I get the feeling that with our male lead who's a bit rough around the edges, she wanted a storytelling style that matched. In the long run this could be really good, but right now it's a bit hard to adjust to sometimes.

2. I'm having a bit of trouble keeping all the characters straight. Some are only there for a scene or two. Some scenes flip too quickly to another character. This is making me have to go back, occasionally, to figure out who I'm reading about.

Overall: I'm still excited about this story and plan on finishing the novel....and if all goes well eventually the rest of the series. I want to know how the war plays out.




Blogs With Bite Discussion Questions:

Q#1 - Did you relate to Jim at all? Did you feel like he was a good choice or worthy of this mission? I like Jim. He's a good guy. He's trying....he really is. I think he will eventually become the right choice for his mission. He's able to play in both fields, so to speak. This will help him out, I think.

Q#2 - How do you feel about the tone of the book? Did you think that there was too much slang/not enough/just enough? How did you feel about the word choice in the book- did it add to your reading of the story or take away from it? I'm occasionally thrown off by some of the word choices, particularly the cussing. I'm not overly bothered by cussing in general, I just don't see a lot of it in the books I read. However, so far it has seemed wholly appropriate for the characters and the overall rough feel of the story.


Q#3 - When the "fantasy" of the book is based on a belief system that is regarded as truth by some religions (the angels & demons) does it help you relate better with the story, as opposed to a story about vampires and werewolves? Not necessarily. I have a strong background in monster stories and myths but I'm not so strong on the angels and demons stuff. I love the idea of angels vs. demons though. Maybe that will be my next obsessive researching topic.

Q#4 - In the opening of this book we read about a football game analogy of Demons verses Angels, even though this is fiction what do think of Demons in this case Jim the Fallen Angel being portrayed as a "Good Guy"? Are fallen angels demons? I didn't get that from the beginning. I was seeing Jim as still angel, but able to play the game dirty (like the demons) because he no longer held perfect angel status. He's fallen, yes, but not demon. Hmmmm....I don't know how to answer this question your way.

Q#5 - How do you feel knowing this will be a 7 book series featuring Jim and he might win all of the battles? I like Jim. I'm fine with him being the focus of the whole series. That said, I hope he gets a run for his money in some of the battles....maybe even loses one or two. The stakes have to be raised somehow...if he's just going to win there is no point even coming to the field for the other team. (Hee! I continued the sports analogy!) ((Yes, I'm a super dork!))


Now I have a question: In recent literature trends vampires, werewolves, dragons, fairies, and etc. are considered paranormal, yes? Are angels and demons in that same general paranormal category....or something else?

Over My Dead Body

Title: Over My Dead Body ( Book 5 of the Broken Heart, Oklahoma Series)

Author: Michelle Bardsley

Genre: Paranormal, Romance

Read an excerpt!



When I originally picked up this book I had no idea it was part of a series. I loved the cover. The bright colors and the varieties of shiny textures all over just made me want to touch it. Besides, in this one the vampire lead is the woman. Awesome! The story itself did not disappoint either. The story takes place in a world very much like our own, only paranormals are becoming increasingly open and part of the society. (Hmmm, sounds like several other books) But this one is a bit different. In Broken Heart, Oklahoma the paranormal population is finding a safe haven...mostly.

What I liked:
1. The cover, but I've already talked about that.

2. Broken Heart, Oklahoma - The setting just makes this book for me. See unlike a lot of books where the authors have built worlds where paranormals are easily accepted, this world is just getting their first real tastes of it. While vampires, werewolves, witches, fairies, and the likely are widely spread they are still looking for safe havens. Broken Heart is just that. The variety of stores and businesses are owned by local residents who just happen to be paranormals themselves and are trying to make a welcoming place for others. It is down home Southern comfort.

3. Michelle Bardsley lets a quirky sense of humor come out through the characters. Even in the midst of a life or death battle there is something funny. This works for me. It's hard to describe, but the one liners and the personal snark that some of the characters share make this a fun read.

What I didn't like:
1. Not much really.

2. I wish I had known this was part of a series; I would have liked to start from the beginning to see if some of the world building things are explained better if I'm with them from the start. Just as an FYI, although I'm labeling this as a series, it seems to be a collection of stand alone stories that are all occuring in the same world / place / Broken Heart. From looking at the author's web page it appears that the world building and some of the characters over lap, but each book focuses on a different towns person. Which could make this end up being a positive.


Overall, I can't wait to get my hands on more of this series. I really enjoyed reading Ms. Bardsley's novel.


*This was read as part of my Fall Into Read Challenge list.*

Sookie Stackhouse

I'm so doing this challenge! Beth over on Beth Fish Reads is offering this challenge. It runs from July 2009 to July 2010. So, I've missed a few months, but I'm pretty sure I'll be able to complete it. I've become hopelessly addicted to Sookie's universe via True Blood. I. Want. To. Read. These.


The Books:

Dead Until Dark
Living Dead in Dallas
Club Dead
Dead to the World
Dead as a Doornail
Definitely Dead
All Together Dead
From Dead to Worse
Dead and Gone

Fall into Reading 2009

As I mentioned earlier, Callipidder Days is hosting the reading challenge "Fall Into Reading 2009". The challenge is scheduled to run from Sept. 22 - December 22. I'm a few days early, but I thought I'd go ahead and post the reading list I hope to make it through. I'm also adding a progress bar to track my progress at a glance. Carolyn from BookChickCity was nice enough to help me out with the code for it. Can you tell I'm excited?

From the library:
1. Blood From Stone ~ Laura Anne Gilman
2. Dead If I Do ~ Tate Hallaway
3. Fragile ~ Shiloh Walker
4. Lords of Desire ~ Virgina Henley, Sally MacKenzie, Victoria Dahl, Kristi Astor
5. Would-Be Witch ~ Kimberly Frost
6. A Drop of Red ~ Chris Marie Green
7. Over My Dead Body ~ Michelle Bardsley

From my shelves:
8. Prom Nights From Hell ~ Meg Cabot, Kim Harrison, Michele Jaffe, Stephanie Meyer, Lauren Myracle
9. My Soul To Take ~ Rachel Vincent
10. Intertwined ~ Gena Showalter

For book clubs:
11. Never Cry Werewolf ~ Heather Davis (Blogs With Bite)
12. The Postmistress ~ Sarah Blake (Barnes and Noble First Look Club) DNF

Fall Reading

It's that time of year. That time of year when the temperatures drop (unless you're in Arizona -we are nowhere near cool yet), leaves change color, pumpkins get ready to be made into delicious treats (mmmm...pumpkin pie, pumpkin butter....anything pumpkin), and I start slowing down on my reading. It's not intentional. I just do. Reading drops off when I go back to teaching. I just don't have as much time to curl up and enjoy the stories. I can't sit for hours every weekend when I only have two days to get everything done I want done. I'm going to fight it this year. I have two things working for me here: 1. This blog. I started it and plan to keep going with it. Maybe it will even get better as it goes. 2. Katrina over on Callapidder Days is offering a Challenge: Fall Into Reading 09. I've put the link on my side bar.

I'm so doing this! I challenge you to do this.

I'll be making up and posting my list here shortly, but I thought the pile of books already waiting for me would be a good place to start.


This is the stack of books I currently have checked out of the library. Technically, I originally checked them out in August, but thanks to the handy-dandy renewal system I can read them in September for the challenge....especially since I only got to two of them in August....and had to stop both as soon as I realized I'd grabbed books that weren't stand alone and were in the middle of a series. And yes, I realize that is a very long run-on sentence. I abuse ellipsis. Get over it.




These are the two from that stack above that I am most excited for. On the left is Would-Be Witch by Kimberly Frost. I'm excited about this one for a silly reason, which I'm sure I'll mention again. I love the fact that we've had Southern Vampires -i.e. Sookie Stackhouse and now we have Southern Witches. I find this highly entertaining. I can't really explain it. The other, Lords of Desire,is a collection of stories. I grabbed it because one of the author's is someone I've talked to (and I follow) on Twitter - Victoria Dahl. She's entertaining there, so I can only bet / hope that her story will be great.


Plus, I have these four books. Three of which came in the prize pack I won from Charolette. (They also came with a great bag from Harlequin, but I'm a dork and didn't get a picture of it.)

The top three are Young Adult novels. I have a soft spot for YA novels...probably due to my being a high school English teacher. The bottom is a historical romance...which I'm learning to love.

In other words, this should be a busy reading season.