Certain Jeopardy; Struecker & Gansky

Certain Jeopardy is a military thriller written by Cpt. Jeff Struecker and Alton Gansky and will be published by B & H Publishing this month. I received an ARC of this book for the purposes of this review & where cited, the page numbers refer to the ARC I was given. There are some spoilers at the end this review, and I apologize ahead of time for that. I had serious issues with certain sections of the book. In order to address my concerns I decided that revealing some of the plot points was necessary. I want to say upfront that despite my concerns and issues with some of the plot problems I very much enjoyed this book. It's absolutely an edge of your seat, stay up late & finish no matter how early you have to get up.

Military thriller is a genre I don't read very much, although I often enjoy them when I do read them- particularly when they are well done. I will say up front that my personal history colors my views about this genre: my husband served in the combat arms branch of the US military back in the days before cell phones & internet service, never mind satellite cell & internet. I have found it impossible to read military thrillers or military romances without my "real world" experiences coloring my impressions. Certain Jeopardy can be divided into two POVs: the homefront and theater actions. The wives and the guys, if you will.

A small squad of Army special forces enlisted soldiers gets tasked to deploy on a mission to Venezuela for some intelligence gathering. As is typical for these things, there is no prior warning & the soldiers are not allowed to tell their families any basic information any family (military or civilian) might like to have: what, where, when, how long, etc. After the squad arrives and sets up, the situation rapidly becomes more dangerous for a variety of reasons. As I have no direct combat experience, I can't vouch for how realistic these sections might be. Having spent quite a significant amount of time with combat soldiers, IMO the rhythm and tone of their interactions is familiar.

It was nice to read an action thriller that's set amid current political issues in a pair of countries I've not seen used as a backdrop for covert military action in a book. The premise is well thought out: the US squad arrives in Venezuela to do their surveillance and the Venezuelans, coincidentally, have 'hotted' things up a bit by kidnapping a nuclear scientist and holding his family hostage. It was fun, I enjoyed this part.

The authors were careful to show just how hard it is for the service member and the spouse left behind to cope with everyday events. Regardless of which spouse is staying home, it's always hard to shoulder both roles when a spouse is deployed. Doubly so when the service member is totally out of contact. Life goes on in all of its messy, overscheduled, drama laden ways no matter how tired or stressed the partner is. I appreciated that about this novel- the life of a spouse left behind is not a bed of roses. Then again- when your service member is literally out of touch? Whining, berating the spouse for the career s/he chose, complaining about anything the service member can't help you with right then? Pointless & stressful for the soldier who is deployed far far away & can't do a damn thing to actually help you. Do both of you a favor & call someone else & bitch.

The conflict between what a soldier may be called to do & what he may believe is morally right is also well done. One of the squad members struggles with what needs to be done in terms of getting the task accomplished successfully & the fact that he's no longer as sure as he once was that the ends justify the means. Too, the depiction of faith as the bulwark that sustains and eases the day to day crises and problems of the spouses and families left behind during all too frequent deployments was wonderful. In my personal experience faith was critical in sustaining families during deployments.

It's two of the wives' parts I have issues with. Specifically with the storyline of the pregnant wife. Every combat unit we were with, the squad and platoon leaders wives understood that they were to contact the top of the phone tree if there were any problems. Anything. Anytime. Problem number one: the squad leader's wife, Stacy, has no idea why this other woman is calling her since they don't actually know each other. Hello?? You're the squad leader's wife. It's part of the territory. Poor Lucy called the top of the phone tree for help- just as she was supposed to. Doesn't matter if Stacy knows her or not. Stacy should have known that once the men deployed she would be the point of contact for the squad wives. Problem two: once the seriousness of the problem with Lucy was known, the squad leader's wife would have contacted the chain of command for help, as well as the American Red Cross. This never happens. She contacts the chaplain- which is fine as far as it goes. But that's not all that would have happened. Neither of these are minor things for me. These are important flaws in the wives' part of the story. The wives' story, the home front story should get as much accuracy as the action sections.

The other problem I have with this aspect of the story is that Lucy is said to be twelve weeks from her due date. (p. 107) A normal pregnancy is forty weeks. This puts Lucy at twenty eight weeks pregnant. No matter what medical problem is happening with the mother or her pregnancy, a twenty eight week gestation- a 28 week baby- has an almost guaranteed survival rate if the child is delivered alive. Mr. Struecker and Mr. Gansky write that Lucy and her baby have such a problem that the physicians want to abort the pregnancy. (p. 171) No physician, no obstetrician, would abort a living child to save the mother in the instance of the medical problem described, at the gestation this character was said to be. Deliver the baby, absolutely. Put the baby in NICU, put the mom in ICU, absolutely. Abort a living child when the pregnancy jeopardizes the mother's life??! Absolutely not. A baby delivered at that gestation is likely to live. Obstetricians would want the best outcome for both the mother and the child- would want both to live. There is nothing implied to be wrong with the baby, so..if there's a NICU, then they could deliver the child & save both of them. Right? No NICU? Then they would have been transported to a facility where there was one. How do I know all this? My loving & devoted ex combat arms soldier husband became an Army OB/GYN nurse.

My only other negative reaction to Certain Jeopardy is the death of the nonbeliever. The only squad member who actively criticizes Christian faith dies. I thought his death was an unnecessary swipe at those readers who might be unchurched. A thinly veiled commentary, if you will. IMO this character's conversion after his experiences would've had much more impact- positive impact at that.

Despite the problems I had with this book I enjoyed it very much. The depiction of home life and theater action was superb. An excellent book, well worth reading, especially if you're interested in a true to life glimpse of what military life is like for the combat branches.

This title is available in paperback from Amazon.com as well as in ebook form for the Kindle.

Melusine; Sarah Monette

My introduction to Sarah Monette's writing was in a short story she wrote for a fantasy anthology titled The Winter Queen, my review HERE. Her voice was very strong and unique, I was immediately captivated. I went to the bookstore not long afterward & bought the only book of hers they had: Melusine. Time went by. More time went by. Eventually I found the second title (The Virtu) and bought that as well. Normally I only buy a series after I've tried the first title & like it enough to continue, but I made an exception for Ms. Monette. There are four books in the Doctrine of Labyrinths series. The next title in the series is The Virtu. I think this would be categorized as dark fantasy, explanation of that term here.

Before I attempt a plot overview, it'll be helpful to click here to read an explanation of the calendars used in Ms. Monette's series. A map is available as well, if you find that helpful in 'seeing' the action. The city of Melusine, set in an indeterminate late medieval/renaissance type world, is ruled by an aristocracy of magicians. The seat of their power, both political and magical, is a building called the Mirador. The populace uses one calendar system and those in power use another- that is only one of many ways class is delineated here. This is a world where indentured servitude is morally and legally permissable. In Melusine, one type of indentured servitude is called being a kept-thief, which, like indentured servitude, is a form of debt bondage.

Felix Harrowgate is a gay wizard living in the Mirador, whose lover is a member of the ruling family. In one horrifying episode, Felix's former master/owner Malkar (whichever term you prefer) uses Felix to break the symbolic focus of the magicians' power, called the Virtu. In so doing Malkar wraps Felix in powerful spells that break both his mind and his spirit. Malkar escapes, leaving Felix to shoulder the blame for what happened.

Down in the Lower City, former kept-thief and assassin Mildmay the Fox, who just happens to be multilingual (among his many talents), manages to stay one step ahead of the law & his enemies while earning a precarious living 'taking assignments', as it were, from people who need things done. Things that are definitely illegal. Another wizard,one Mavortian von Heber, from another country, uses magic that brings Mildmay to him. Von Heber wants Mildmay to help free/kidnap,depending on your point of view I suppose, Felix from wherever he is.

The narrative relates how Malkar manipulated & then ruined Felix in order to destroy the Virtu. How Malkar escapes. What happens to Felix. Who Mildmay is & what his life is like. Mildmay then meets von Heber & von Heber's brother Bernard, who hire him to either free or kidnap Felix, depending on your POV. This takes up roughly two thirds of the book. The remaining third tells how our intrepid little band (Mildmay, Bernard & von Heber) manage to get out of Melusine and find Felix. Then they cross the neighboring countries, sail over the sea & land in a place where the magicians there manage to heal Felix.

There is quite significant world building in this book. Much detail. Felix is an antihero- very difficult to like, even taking into consideration what was done to him. It's a safe bet to say I really don't like him much, but that's ok- he probably wouldn't like me much either. LOL :) Mildmay is more likeable: lives by his own code, his own sense of honor. He's actually a good person underneath the exterior shell he shows people, the one that he had to learn to keep himself alive in the Lower City of Melusine. I suspect Ms. Monette intended that one of them had to be more palatable in order to keep the reader invested. von Heber and Bernard, I came to like them all right, but I'm a cynical and suspicious reader & I wonder if they're really as harmless as they seem.

Hmmmmm..both Felix & Mildmay are red heads, which isn't found in Melusine. Mildmay, in fact, used to dye his hair to hide better. Wonder what that portends in the next book?? Favorite quote, p. 199:

"Consider the stars. Among them are no passions, no wars. They know neither love nor hatred. Did man but emulate the stars, would not his soul become clear and radiant as they are? But man's spirit draws him like a moth to the ephemera of this world, and in their heat he is consumed entire."

Dark Need; Lynn Viehl

Dark Need is book three in author Lynn Viehl’s Darkyn series. The first book is If Angels Burn, the newest title, released in January of this year, is Stay the Night. Click link in title above to see info page at Fantastic Fiction. Cover image also found there. The series is contemporary alternate reality paranormal (vampires) primarily set in the United States. Ms. Viehl also writes science fiction under the name S.L. Viehl, among other genres. In my opinion it isn’t necessary to read these in order & a reader won’t miss too much by picking up the series in the middle. Similar to a mystery or SFF series, there is an overarching plot that continues through all of the books, however Ms. Viehl is skilled in bringing a new reader, or in my case a lapsed reader, up to speed without doing an ‘info dump’.

Ft. Lauderdale homicide detective Samantha Brown and her soon to retire partner Harry Quinn are tasked to solve a case in which the murder victim was drowned in fresh water and then placed on a park bench within several hundred yards of the ocean. Interestingly enough, she’s also across the street from a goth nightclub called Infusion. Samantha is tall and statuesque and lives alone in a security conscious gated complex. She’s one of those people who allows their profession to be all consuming & her only emotional attachment is to her partner and his wife.

Lucan, who was called Noir de l’Anfar centuries ago, is the Darkyn managing the club and the new gardin in Ft. Lauderdale. Once he was the Darkyn high lord’s pet assassin and enforcer, but has left Europe and Ireland for America and, perhaps one day, peace of mind if not actual peace. Someone is framing him, but whom? And for what purpose? One of his enemies? Or one of the high lord’s enemies? Could it be the Brethren of the Light, that supersecret order within the Roman Catholic church who were all sworn to unquestioning obedience and the eradication of the Darkyn?

Ms. Viehl keeps the pacing high and the plots whirl in my head like the circus professional who spins several plates at once, never dropping one. Lucan and Sam, Michael and Alex (the couple from the first book) are central to the action. John Keller (Alex’s renegade brother & former member of the Brethren) sidles into town as well. The high lord himself shows up & then things really start to happen. As if it was quiet & plodding before. *snort*

Lucan’s secondary gift is unique and unusual & made me smile. I understood his motives when he attempts to push Samantha away, although the use of forced sex made me very uncomfortable and unhappy. The typical Romanceland shortcut of having the heroine end up a) understanding what he was actually trying to do and b) sexually respond in a positive way to his aggression didn’t do much to ease my discomfort. There is only one instance of this in the book. Lucan believes he will not survive the coming confrontation & is attempting to protect Samantha’s life. Each reader will have to make up their own mind about how this is treated. Speaking for myself, I was ok with it although I wish Ms. Viehl had come up with a different way to achieve the same goal.

Obviously, in real life I don’t condone or accept that there is any instance of this type of sexual coercion & violence being acceptable in any way at all. In fiction, though, I can generally give it a pass depending on how the author frames the episode and what the ramifications are.

An excellent installment in the Darkyn series. Spurred me to run to the UBS and buy the next book. I absolutely had to know how a certain plot point that carried over was resolved. I rushed over to my shelves & discovered that the fourth title is the only one I didn’t have. The next one is fabulous as well.

ANZAC Day 2009

Remember the Fallen

Waltzing Matilda


Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong
Under the shade of a coolibah tree,
And he sang as he watched and waited 'til his billy boiled
"You'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me"

Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda
"You'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me"
And he sang as he watched and waited 'til his billy boiled,
"You'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me".

Down came a jumbuck to drink at that billabong,
Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him with glee,
And he sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tucker bag,
"You'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me".

Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda
"You'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me"
And he sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tucker bag,
"You'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me".

Up rode the squatter, mounted on his thoroughbred,
Down came the troopers, one, two, three,
"Where's that jolly jumbuck you've got in your tucker bag?"
"You'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me".

Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda
"You'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me"
"Where's that jolly jumbuck you've got in your tucker bag?",
"You'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me".

Up jumped the swagman and sprang into the billabong,
"You'll never catch me alive", said he,
And his ghost may be heard as you pass by that billabong,
"You'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me".

Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda
"You'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me"
And his ghost may be heard as you pass by that billabong,
"You'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me."
"Oh, You'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me."



Images found on Wikimedia and Austrialian gov't Defence website; lyrics found on Wikimedia

The War of the Flowers; Tad Williams

I has been a long long time since I've read a book written by Tad Williams. In fact, I've not read anything by him since I was _____ year old, lo those many many years ago. The only other book I've read by him is Tailchaser's Song. I don't remember how I heard of this book except that someone on my feed reader mentioned it in a post I read. I think I've almost eighty blogs on my reader though, so I've no idea which person mentioned it. Sorry! In my opinion, The War of the Flowers is a combination mystery/political thriller that's set in Faerie. Since it has been so long since I've read his work, I'm counting Mr. Williams as a new to me author. Overall I'd say it's a positive impression. :)

Theo Vilmos is a thirty year old man, chronologically speaking. Averse to "growing up", he behaves and has the emotional depth and mentality of an overgrown teenager. In the space of nine months or so Theo loses his girlfriend, their baby (to miscarriage) & his mother (to cancer). After settling his mother's estate he settles into a remote mountain cabin to try and put himself back to rights after an eventful several months.

Unfortunately for him, shortly after he's up there Theo gets attacked by a mysterious "thing" and to save his own life he's spirited through a magical doorway into Faerie. Little Applecore, a tiny sprite, was sent to open the door and bring Theo through. Applecore works for Lord Tansy. It was supposed to be a one time deal, but Theo's life becomes exponentially more complicated. Applecore becomes Theo's guide to all things Faerie. The "thing" following him has crossed as well. And Faerie has serious political problems. But what does all of this have to do with Theo?

Theo appears to be crucial to the power games whispering loudly through the lush homes in the City, but he doesn't know why or how. The "thing" is still following him, though. We follow Theo and Applecore and a few other friends Theo picks up along the way as Theo tries to stay one step ahead of both the "thing" and the political shenanigans. Then there's the question about Theo's great uncle's notebook & who & what the old gentleman had to do with anything in Faerie.

There are a lot of things I like about Mr. Williams' Faerie. For one, the surnames are all flowers (duh!) but most of the personal names are subtypes of flowers within that type. Er..for example, the Apple family all have related names: Seed, Skin, Pie, Pip, Doll, Tart, Tree, Wood, etc. The fairy aristocracy are all named after flowers: Tansy, Daffodil, Hollyhock, etc. you get the idea. The highest caste fairies don't have wings and are generally human size or larger.

Certain aspects of the mystery I figured out & others caught me totally by surprise. I guess that was the best thing, actually. When I realized I'd figured out one of the plot issues by page fifty or so I wondered what else Mr. Williams had up his sleeve. I wasn't disappointed. It is a little slow, things unfold in their own time. The reader really has to pay attention over the entire span of the book to get a glimpse of what might be coming.

Meme: What We Read

This is a fun meme I first saw at The Written World by Kailana and over at The Book Smugglers.



1. What author do you own the most books by? PG Wodehouse

2. What book do you own the most copies of?
Our apartment is too small to keep duplicates. However, I have two copies each of:













3. What fictional character are you secretly in love with? Valentine Corbett in:







4. What book have you read more than any other?




5. What was your favorite book when you were ten years old? I'm unsure, but most likely:


6. What is the worst book you’ve read in the past year? Generally I don't finish books I don't like, but I'd have to say Cherished by Elizabeth Thornton or Light of the Moon by Luanne Rice.

7. What is the best book you’ve read in the past year? I couldn't pick only one. Maybe Skeletons at the Feast by Chris Bohjalian.


8. If you could tell everyone you tagged to read one book, what would it be? Only one?! Wow. I'll have to think about that one. I think my choice would be: To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee



9. What is the most difficult book you’ve ever read? I absolutely can't stand Great Expectations by Charles Dickens.


10. Do you prefer the French or the Russians? Haven't read any of the Russians, so it's the French by default.

11. Shakespeare, Milton or Chaucer? Shakespeare

12. Austen or Eliot? Neither. I like the Brontes.


13. What is the biggest or most embarrassing gap in your reading? Classics.

14. What is your favorite novel? This is probably similar to #8, but I think it would be either: Uncle Fred in Springtime by PG Wodehouse or any of the Bertie and Jeeves novels.

15. Play? Midsummer Night's Dream

16. Poem? Mab in Romeo and Juliet by Shakespeare:


O, then, I see Queen Mab hath been with you.
She is the fairies’ midwife, and she comes
In shape no bigger than an agate-stone
On the fore-finger of an alderman,
Drawn with a team of little atomies
Over men’s noses as they lie asleep;
Her wagon-spokes made of long spinners’ legs,
The cover of the wings of grasshoppers,
The traces of the smallest spider’s web,
The collars of the moonshine’s watery beams,
Her whip of cricket’s bone; the lash of film;
Her waggoner a small grey-coated gnat,
Not half so big as a round little worm
Prick’d from the lazy finger of a maid:
Her chariot is an empty hazel-nut
Made by the joiner squirrel or an old grub,
Time out o’ mind the fairies’ coachmakers.
And in this state she gallops night by night
Through lovers’ brains, and then they dream of love;
O’er courtiers’ knees, that dream on court’sies straight,
O’er lawyers’ fingers, who straight dream on fees,
O’er ladies ‘ lips, who straight on kisses dream,
Which oft the angry Mab with blisters plagues,
Because their breaths with sweetmeats tainted are:
Sometime she gallops o’er a courtier’s nose,
And then dreams he of smelling out a suit;
And sometime comes she with a tithe-pig’s tail
Tickling a parson’s nose as a’ lies asleep,
Then dreams, he of another benefice:
Sometime she driveth o’er a soldier’s neck,
And then dreams he of cutting foreign throats,
Of breaches, ambuscadoes, Spanish blades,
Of healths five-fathom deep; and then anon
Drums in his ear, at which he starts and wakes,
And being thus frighted swears a prayer or two
And sleeps again. This is that very Mab
That plaits the manes of horses in the night,
And bakes the elflocks in foul sluttish hairs,
Which once untangled, much misfortune bodes:
This is the hag, when maids lie on their backs,
That presses them and learns them first to bear,
Making them women of good carriage:
This is she—"




17. Essay? Anything by David Sedaris, but especially Holidays on Ice.

18. Short Story? Anything by Edgar Allan Poe

19. Non Fiction?

20. Graphic Novel? Haven't read any of these, unfortunately.

21. Science Fiction? Catherine Asaro's Skolian books, Linnea Sinclair, anything by Robert Heinlein, Scott Westerfeld's Risen Empire duology.

22. Who is your favorite writer? Living Writer? Don't have just one, there are several: Patricia McKillip & Jane Yolen, Katherine Kurtz & Anne Bishop, Jacqueline Carey. Deceased writers? PG Wodehouse & Robert Louis Stevenson.

23. Who is the most over rated writer alive today? Um..Stephanie Meyer?

24. Best Memoir?





25. Best History?


26. Best mystery or Noir? Any of Laura Joh Rowland's Sano Ichiro

Newest release, 2008

Or else anything in Peter Tremayne's Sister Fidelma series:

July 2009 release

27. What is your desert island book? Any omnibus collection of PG Wodehouse books. Anything off of my keeper shelves.

28. Who deserves to win the next Nobel Prize for literature? Uh..no opinion. I read mostly "ghetto" er..I mean genre literature, which as all Nobel panelists know is never worthy of such on honor. *SNORT*

29. What book would you most like to see made into a movie? The Risen Empire duology by Scott Westerfeld.

30. What book would you least like to see made into a movie? No opinion.

31. Describe your weirdest dream involving a writer, book, or literary character. Generally I don't remember my dreams. Except the ones that come true.

32. And ... what are you reading right now?

Beyond Heaving Bosoms by the Smartbitches:

Light of the Moon; Luanne Rice

Dunno where to start with this one. I don't think I've been more disappointed with a new to me author in a long long time. First impressions are crucial & mine is pretty low..so I don't know if I'm even willing to try another book by her. I finished this a while ago I've been so reluctant to put it all in writing.

Susannah Connolly (Mary Sue extraordinaire), professor at a small Connecticut college, has decided to take a short sabbatical after the death of her mother. She travels to a rural section of France that was very important to her parents. While there she meets Grey Dempsey out on the marsh in what could have been a near fatal encounter with wild bulls. Over the next few weeks Susannah becomes increasingly attracted to Grey and makes friendly overtures to his young daughter Sari, who suffers with the aftereffects of a serious closed head injury. Susannah's pushy ex boyfriend makes an appearance as well.

Grey, an American who runs a horseback tour ranch, and his daughter, who is half Roma/French and half American, have an uneasy, prickly relationship partly due to her injuries and partly due to the fact that her injury directly stems from her mother's flight from the family household with her lover. Grey used to be a relatively well established journalist whose dreams of running an equine based business with his wife have all evaporated. Sari's best friend Laurent seems to know better than Grey does, when and how far to push Sari, when to back off. Then there's the Roma community, and Sari's mother and her lover.

Now, on the face of all that it should have been relatively easy to like this book. There are too many coincidences and cliches and things left unexplored in this book. Too many plot threads that got wrapped up in pretty pink bows. The time line was too short, for one. Less than three months, if I totted it up properly. Three months for so many miracles to happen to Grey, Susannah, Sari & her mother. It was ridiculous.

The problems:

1. Susannah travels to rural France, but miraculously falls in love with an American whose parents live in Rhode Island. Which is a little too convenient for me. No language or cultural conflicts. Of all the fifty states, he's from Little Rhody? which is right next door to Connecticut. Yeah ok. Very convenient for the bicontinental relationship we can see coming at the end of the book.

2. Grey has lived in France full time at least since his marriage, roughly ten years ago. However, he speaks English at home with his daughter. Pardonnez moi?? You don't even speak French at home with your French born child? Not to mention her Roma cultural heritage, which I believe includes their own language. But no. He's American so they speak English.

3. After Susannah and Grey and Sari make peace and try to become friends a little bit, miraculously Sari begins to heal from her mental and physical scars. Naturally, there had been little to no improvement in the previous five years. Until Grey and Susannah show signs of becoming friends. Nothing like a little female rivalry to get the healing flowing. HA! >:(

4. The whole entire storyline involving the mother, her lover, & their Las Vegas equine revue. I can't say too much without revealing the plot, but Jeez. Really. There have been several too many coincidences & "wow it's a small world after all" moments. The explication and sudden healing of all actual, physical and metaphysical rifts between all involved parties is just too much. Really.

5. There is no discussion of the reality of the life the Roma actually live in Europe- which is degrading, painful, squalid and full of what most Americans would identify in our own country as pre Civil Rights attitudes and issues and living conditions.

One or two of these, properly done, would have been more than enough for one single book. All five of them in one single volume? Not gonna fly. At least, not with this reader. Every single plot thread is wrapped up with its own resolution and neat pink bow, although Sari's needs aren't totally solved it's made plain that she's well on her way to total health.

Light of the Moon was published in 2008 in hardcover, and is currently out in mass market. It's published by Bantam. Luanne Rice is a prolific author with a huge backlist. It seems that most of her works could be categorized as women's fiction with strong romantic overtones. Link to her backlist is in the title above.

Feeling Human Now

For the first time in a long time, I managed to combine two of my favorite things in the whole wide world: stomach flu and my monthly. How lovely. Thrilling even. Anyone who knows me knows that I absolutely despise, loathe and abhor being sick. Not only that, I'm bitchy mean and cranky and want to hide. Don't ask me anything. Actually- don't talk to me. Pretend I don't exist. Poor hubby. He hates it. Being a nurse, he's one of the most nurturing men I've ever met. Likes to hover, bring juice, fresh boxes of tissues. Chat. Will watch endless Lifetime TV movies. Willing to read me Smart Bitches and Dear Author posts. It drives me batty. Fortunately, he's learned that I really dislike being fussed over and he spends these energies on the kids when they get sick. Add in my monthly and, well, let's just say the fellow inhabitants of Bookwormom Central were more than happy to escape to those more civilized places: school and work.

I did read. Quite a bit. Reviews to come. I'm falling desperately behind (7 books). Chat more tomorrow.

Access Romance Post

Posted a column over at Access Romance this morning asking if book reviewers give inflated grades. Check it out & tell me what you think.




see more Lolcats and funny pictures

I won't be posting much over the next few days, I've picked up a stomach bug that's giving me hell. I'll post as soon as I feel better.

Where Serpents Sleep; CS Harris

Where Serpents Sleep is the latest installment in C.S. Harris’ Sebastian St. Cyr mystery series. Published by Obsidian in November of 2008, it takes place in May of 1812, several months after Why Mermaids Sing. As I mentioned in my reviews of the previous books, HERE and HERE. I don’t think it necessary to read the previous installments of St.Cyr’s mysteries unless you are interested in the depth of characterization and the back story of St. Cyr’s family history and his love life. I try very hard in these reviews not to give away significant plot details while still giving readers a sense of what did and didn’t work for me as well as a general overview of the story.

A little history is helpful though. Sebastian St. Cyr, Viscount Devlin, is heir to the Earldom of Hendon after the untimely death of his older brother. Devlin’s sister, I think her name is Amanda, is older, married, conventional and seems to dislike both her father Alistair and her brother. The Countess of Hendon was presumed deceased in a boating accident years ago until Devlin recently learned otherwise. Devlin’s lady love, the Irish actress Kat Boleyn, is now out of reach, having lately married a pirate. Yes, really. A pirate. The hows and whys of this turn of events is related in the previous book Why Mermaids Sing.

In Where Serpents Sleep our hero is pressed into investigating the disappearance of a young prostitute who was being helped by Devlin’s nemesis’ daughter, one Miss Hero Jarvis. Ms. Jarvis is interested in doing good works and is an intelligent and curious young woman. Her own father says in effect that Hero would’ve been a wonderful son, but makes an awful daughter. One of Ms. Jarvis’ particular interests is helping prostitutes get off the street to learn a trade. In one horrifying incident a young woman is murdered in Hero’s arms while the building that houses them burns to the ground. Hero wants Devlin to investigate this young woman & find out how and why she ended up as a prostitute. Devlin acquiesces only because he knows that helping her will infuriate her father, Lord Jarvis (who happens to be the power behind the throne & thus nearly unstoppable).

The prickly relationship between Lord Jarvis, Hero and Devlin was fun to watch. The relationship between Hero & her dad was unique & ..on the cold blooded side, I guess. Then again, the glimpses into the Jarvis household prove once again that surface appearances hide the truth in the deeps. Honesty compels me to say that I found the whole 'sea cave scene' to be straight out of the romance genre- a little unusual, I suppose, but not wholly unexpected. I would've been pleased if the scene had played out differently. It sets up intriguing possibilities for future books.

Overall, another enjoyable episode in the St. Cyr series. Well worth the time!

Image found on Fantastic Fiction.

Why Mermaids Sing; CS Harris

This is the third title in Ms. Harris' Sebastian St. Cyr regency mystery series. The first title is What Angels Fear. I don't think it's necessary to read them in order, like most mystery series each stands easily on his own. However, if you're a reader who enjoys digging deeply into a character's personality and motivation than I suggest you begin with the first book. Ms. Harris has written romance novels as well (under the name of Candice Proctor), but if you're a romance reader I think it best to set aside the standard romance genre 'rules' and read these strictly with your "mystery reader" hat on. According to Ms. Harris' blog the next Sebastian mystery will be titled What Remains of Heaven. She's also busily plotting the book after that one. I'm thrilled to know that there are plenty of books to come!

Sebastian St. Cyr is investigating yet another gruesome case. Young well born men are being murdered, partially dissected and left in prominent public places. Because St.Cyr (or Devlin, if one calls him by his title) moves in these circles, he is asked to make discreet inquiries. His sister and his father are scandalized by both his inquires into the murders and by his quiet but well known amorous relationship with a well known Irish actress. Not that St. Cyr cares much for their opinion mind you. St. Cyr has some trouble linking these disparate young men together at first, the Ton, after all, is not a monolith. On the surface there is little to link them together.

In the midst of all this Devlin proposes to his ladylove, Kat Boleyn. Unbeknownst to Devlin Kat was a French spy in the recent past. Kat is now attempting to shed her past role, but she finds that doing so is like trying to get out a modern street gang- impossible. Powerful political figures know who she is and what she used to do. People who are willing to resort to nefarious techniques to try and force her to do what they want. Apart from that, Devlin's father, Alister St. Cyr, Earl of Hendon, and Kat discover something that irrevocably changes the relationship between the three of them. Something that Devlin may never forgive him for.

All in all, a wonderful installment in the series. Kept me on the edge of my seat wondering just how it would all shake out in the end. The relationship issue between Kat & Devlin was a huge-huge surprise. Yet, Devlin never asks questions of Kat. His head is buried firmly in the sand & he wanted it that way. So..his reactions kind of perplex me. It's hard to discuss this aspect without revealing what happens, but I really think that if your lover has a dubious past & you don't ask questions or do a little quiet questioning you get what's coming.
As for the mystery part, I was completely at a loss for a good while, and Ms. Harris had me questioning and trying to figure out plot twists all on my own.

Image found on Fantastic Fiction

Reading reading & more reading

Sorry I've not been around much these last few weeks. I've been glomming all of Anne Bishop's books on my shelves. Reread & reread & become supremely annoyed that I've got every Black Jewels set novel she's published. My only outlet now is to try & collect all of her short stories.

Other than that I've also read:

1. Hope's Folly~ Linnea Sinclair

2. Dark Need~ Lynn Viehl

Ms. Sinclair is a new to me author who I also plan to glom, initially from the library. Luckily, Keishon's TBR Challenge is science fiction romance this month (post due up April 16th if you're participating) & I've had Linnea Sinclair's Gabriel's Ghost for a long time now. Currently reading Night Lost by Lynn Viehl.

Spring is here

Hubby and I finally managed to do a couple of gardening chores this week. Just before several days of drizzle, as it happens. My parents gifted me with a small mesh bag of gladiolus bulbs. He dug me a deep trench along the edge of the front steps & I planted about 2/3 of them. I still have about ten more. They're planted behind my daylilies. I hope they make it ok.I have terrible squirrel problems & my bulbs don't always last very long.


We also moved the young maple tree that had been growing hard up beside the front porch into the backyard. It's about..7-8' tall & has little leaf buds on the branches. Poor tree would never have survived in its original location. Someone would've had to cut it down. Too many branches, too big, roots all under the porch, etc. Now it's about 5' away from the back porch in full sun. Hubby dug a deep hole and we put a layer of composted manure in the bottom. I nipped off a bunch of the lowest branches. He's tied to a stake. Hopefully he'll survive our attempt at transplantation. His new location gives him a fighting chance at a long life. The power lines aren't too close so maybe he'll have a chance to grow to his full rounded shape. The deepest roots were under our concrete front steps & porch, we had to cut them to move him. I'll be sure to baby him over the next couple of summers so it won't suffer with the heat and the drought. Our neighborhood has quite a few mature trees considering we live in suburbia, maybe he'll make it. I've no idea what type of maple he is except that he's not a silver maple. I just recognize that he's a maple. His leaves were red last fall. Pictures to come.

Image found on answers.com

Jacqueline Carey News

Found over on Suduvu: Jacqueline Carey has posted an excerpt from her upcoming release Naamah's Kiss, click here to read it. Naamah's Kiss will be released in hardcover in June.

Evernight; Claudia Gray

I saw this somewhere on my feed reader & borrowed it from the library. Evernight was published by Harper Teen in 2008. The newest one is Stargazer, released in March of this year. Evernight is a young adult vampire-coming of age-adventure book. This is projected to be a four book series, a la Harry Potter, one book per school year. I lost my notes, so the little details have vanished out of my head like morning mist, but I remember most of it.

Bianca Olivier & her parents have moved to Evernight Academy from a tiny town. Her parents will be teaching and Bianca will live in the dorms (it's a boarding school) with Patrice. From the beginning it's clear that Bianca won't easily fit in here. She makes friends with Lucas Ross after he chases her through the woods and she tries to muddle through her first year. The reader only finds some things out as Bianca does, which adds to the suspense & the feeling of dread that slowly seeps into the book. Bianca's first "feed" is Lucas, and she doesn't cope all that well with the resulting feelings and consequences. When the truth behind Lucas' presence in the school is revealed in a violent and devestating scene involving her parents Bianca reacts in a totally understandable way. She runs away with him.

I really really struggled to finish this one. Bianca swung between TSTL, hormone addled, angst ridden to insightful, thoughtful and protective. It drove me batshit crazy. I read quite a bit of young adult lit, I expect and understand that teens naturally swing from one emotional and behavioral extreme to another. I get that. Really I do. I have three of them. Teens that is. But somehow Bianca drove me over the edge. Which made me wonder just how much do I really have to like a protagonist to keep reading their story?

There is nothing resolved in this episode. Both Bianca and Lucas survive their stupidity. There is quite a lot of implied behind the scenes goings on with the adults. This reader wonders if the Headmistress Mrs. Bethany is really the archenemy. How much does Bianca, and by extension, the reader not know? I am very glad I borrowed this book from our local library, I think I'd've been furious if I'd actually bought it. They have the second one, but I'm unsure if I'll continue with them. If I do it'll be because a) I want to prove to myself I can finish a series when I despise the protagonist b) I want to know who & what the motivating factors behind the scenes are and c) I like Balthazar More much more than I like Lucas and I hope to see more of him in future books.

March Synopsis

Listed in totally random order. Reviews for 1-3 & 7 coming. #8 is a reread but hadn't been reviewed, so I'm counting it towards my annual total.

1. Evernight, Claudia Gray

2. Why Mermaids Sing, C. S. Harris~

3. Where Serpents Sleep, C. S. Harris~

4. The Risen Empire- Scott Westerfeld

5. The Killing of Worlds- Scott Westerfeld

6. Mistress of the Art of Death- Ariana Franklin

7. Light of the Moon- Luanne Rice

8. Daughter of the Blood- Anne Bishop


DNF

To the Last Man Jeff Shaara- took him over 100 pages to introduce all of the protagonists. Let's have some action already!

Correction-April 2- #8's correct author is Anne Bishop, not Anne Rice as originally listed.

Reread Challenge: Daughter of the Blood; Anne Bishop

For this month's Reread Challenge over at Nath's blog (link also on sidebar), I reread Anne Bishop's first book in the Black Jewels Trilogy. The copy I have is one of the original mass market versions published by Roc in 1998, this is the cover on the left. The cover on the right is the new one. There are now several versions (mm, qp, ebook, etc.) available, many listed on the author's website listed in the link embedded in the title above. DotB is dark fantasy. To see a list of this month's Reread Challenge participants click here. To read my original comments on this series, click here.

Ms. Bishop created a formidably complex world in this book, one that completely fascinated me. Parts of Daughter of the Blood were dark enough, torturous enough that I don't read them. I stopped reading certain characters' vignettes halfway through the first time I picked this book up. That hasn't changed. I reread this series every year and every year I just can't do it.

In this world, the Blood are a people gifted with magic. Individuals have gifts of varying degrees which are symbolized by colored jewels given during certain childhood rituals. The Blood are spread among several small connected countries and often live among nonmagical humans, called landens. Generally, the Blood believe that women are the symbolic vessel of power, thus Blood societies are of a matriarchal feudal type. Men serve in various capacities, some of which are usually thought of as typically female: contraception within committed relationships, protecting the woman from overextending herself (sometimes via magic) and similar.

Ok. So there are two young men, named Lucivar and Daemon, who are hugely gifted with power, who have been enslaved by morally corrupt ruling queens who are murdering their female rivals. They keep powerful males weak and submissive via pain and torture and outright murder since ordinarily a powerful male would kill off a ruling queen who is corrupt. These women are in a quest to dominate all of the countries around them. These two young men are friends of a sort, a bond forged in pain and suffering. A seven year old little girl visits each of them, under bizarre circumstances, in secret.

The little girl intrigues everyone she meets. It's rapidly apparent that she was gifted with more power than anyone ever. This, unfortunately, sets her apart- makes her an outlier to use Malcolm Gladwell's phrase. Jaenelle Angelline, even at her young age, has secrets- dark secrets that make the ones who love her most fearful for her very survival. Will Jaenelle survive to fulfill her destiny, whatever that might be?

Daughter of the Blood is the story of Jaenelle, Daemon, Lucivar and Saetan. It is an age old story in some ways: depravity, immorality to the point of being a sociopath, greed for power and influence. Corruption. Suffering. Finding one's purpose in life. Compassion. The story hops between various viewpoints, always furthering the plot one step at a time. However, it continues into book two, Heir to the Shadows. There is no resolution at the end of this book. I absolutely love this series & recommend it often. Ms. Bishop's newest release, The Shadow Queen, came out in March and is set in this world and is linked to The Invisible Ring.

Images found on Tower and Mobipocket.

Yakkity yak

I've finished several books recently, reviews coming soon.

1. Evernight, Claudia Gray YA vampire

2. Why Mermaids Sing, C. S. Harris~ Regency mystery Sebastian St. Cyr series

3. Where Serpents Sleep, C. S. Harris~ Regency mystery Sebastian St. Cyr series

I'm fighting off a reading slump here. I really fell in love with CS Harris' Sebastian series, but Where Serpent's Sleep is the most recent title & she says the next one won't be out until October or November of this year, according to a post on her blog. I've picked up The Shadow Queen by Anne Bishop, cover & link on sidebar on the left. Not currently listening to an audiobook.


OOOOO-OOOO- I just remembered! How could I forget?! Hubby and I are jointly reading Lynn Viehl's Dark Need, part of her Darkyn paranormal romance series. I'm so excited! He knows about my love for vampire romances & wanted to read one to see 'what it's all about.' Coming soon.

The Charlemagne Pursuit; Steve Berry- Guest Reviewer

I borrowed this from the library for My Hubby since he likes this type of thriller. Click link in title above to go to Mr. Berry's website. TCP was published in 2008 by Ballantine. It is the latest (fourth) title in the ongoing series of adventures starring Mr. Berry's protagonist, Cotton Malone. The first book in the series is The Templar Legacy. I've only read one other Steve Berry book, The Romanov Prophecy which review you can read HERE. The Hubby wrote this review- he's tickled pink at my request & I'm happy to have his help. With no further delay:

In the latest story of Cotton Malone, a former Justice Dept. lawyer-agent & now bookseller, the circumstances surrounding the death of his father thirty eight years ago need to be revealed. In book four of the series, most of the world's treasures have been revealed to a select group of White House personnel. There are several groups who wish to investigate what happened to a nuclear submarine that was supposed to be in the north Atlantic. Survivors of the missing crew members want to know the specifics: who, what, where, when & why. How do ancient books, ancient civilizations and high level inside the Beltway power plays influence the outcome?

The Charlemagne Pursuit is an easy, take on vacation kind of book. Cotton Malone, the main character, seems to have gotten smarter as the series moved on, although he's always a pawn on the chessboard of higher authorities. I'm not sure why there are so many White House power players involved in an Indiana Jones type scavenger hunt but their influence makes hopping continents, carrying weapons and sliding past customs much easier. Then there is the usual spider web of FBI, intelligence and security advisors double crossing each other complicated with real and artificial connections to the past plus a few fortune hunters and lost civilizations thrown in for good measure.

While it's formulaic, TCP does make you wonder just how many warehouses filled with Indiana Jones type treasures do we have? Mr. Berry will certainly keep you guessing about where it will end. An almost believable ending. 3 out of 5 stars on the man-meter.

Image found on Fantastic Fiction

Family Update

I can't believe I've not written one of these since right before Thanksgiving! I'm falling behind. What else is new? I suppose much has happened since then, but I'll be damned if I can think of anything worth posting. On that cheery note, here goes.

The Hubster~ Now! Rounding into the final stretch, as they say at the Kentucky Derby, of school. He'll graduate in mid May, should the final med-surg rotation not kill him. Or..more accurately, induce him to kill someone else in sheer frustration at their stupidity. These years of nursing school have done more to instill in me a deep seated suspicion regarding the quality of medical professionals than almost anything else could have. Except perhaps studying medical malpractice cases. Anyhow. Other than being frazzled within an inch of his life, being harassed at work because he's a) the only male and b) the only white person in his section he's fine. The work situation has been straightened out, supposedly, with explanations to him that people were formally reprimanded & others will be moved. No fault to him. We shall see. Just the other day we put in for an out of state nursing position in New England. I've no idea if he'll get it or not, it was a spur of the moment thing. In his current field, in the state where we tried to move years ago when he got out of the military. *sigh* The timing is awful.

College Student~ His loan money finally came in. He had to wait until the second semester for it all- good thing he rooms with relatives who were understanding. I can only imagine the troubles late loan money caused other needy students. His bills are totally caught up now & he has a little set aside for the last few weeks of school. I suppose it's better late than never, but I'm angry that he had to scrape by on so little for so long. His ancient vehicle is still creaking along, but her status is iffy for next school year. It's likely his summer job money will go towards a down payment on a newer used vehicle. His summer job will be at the McDonald's where he worked last summer. He's hoping to find something that pays better, but if his initiative holds true he'll stick with the golden arches & not bother with a serious job hunt. The path of least resistance being his tried and true preference. I mentioned to him that he might look for a sugar mama so she can keep him in the style to which he'd like to become adjusted. I was only slightly kidding.

Anime Queen~ Still doesn't have the balance between socializing and academics. Barely has her head above water and may not be able to continue in her program for the final year (senior year, the 09-10 academic year). She insists she's going to pull it all together at the end. I have serious doubts, but I'm doing everything I can to help her short of outright torture. On a brighter note, she's thinking of applying to art school & has asked her art teacher to help her put together a portfolio. We've scheduled a visit to Tiny Downstate Ladies College, which has an excellent regional reputation and supposedly a proven track record for nurturing young women's intellectual growth. HMPH. She needs 50 lashes and a stint in basic training is what she needs. A good drill sergeant to keep her on track. Unfortunately that's me. :(

Pianist~ Has had some rough moments, academically. All of which appear to be related to a mild case of attentional problems: severe disorganization, late work, bad attitude in school, talkative, no impulse control to speak of, etc. These issues seem to be under control at the moment, with a little pharmaceutical assistance. That we seem to have found a solution is backed up by dramatically improved grades and a marked decrease in annoyed and vaguely threatening phone calls from the school administration. Musically he's doing well, bonus points for weeks in which he bothered to practice properly. He's in the handbell choir with Anime Queen and me, but hasn't been able to sing in the Schola as the rehearsal runs too late on a school night. His friend, the one whose mother suddenly passed away just before Thanksgiving, appears to be coping relatively well. Her unexpected death has prompted meaningful changes in the medical screening of emergency personnel in our area. We hope anyway.

Me~ Um. A little stressed. One kid whose school money got caught in the Great Depression v. 2.0. One kid whose brain seems to have gone out on extended vacation & may not return. One kid whose formerly supernova academic star suddenly looked incredibly dim and who couldn't keep a civil tongue in his mouth. A husband whose work life abruptly became hostile & who is in the middle of the last year of school. So now that everyone else has had a turn to freak out, it's mom's turn for a minor breakdown. It came as no surprise that I'd gained 10 pounds over last year's physical, although my blood pressure is now in the normal range. I was "plump" before and now I think I've definitely graduated into "round". I tell myself that round is a shape. I can't concentrate on the books I pick up & it has been hard to keep up with the blog. The Hubster is worried about me & tells me that I mustn't take Anime Queen's antics to heart, that she is old enough to reap what she sows, that it doesn't reflect on me, that at 17 she's old enough to take responsibility for her actions. I know these things in my head, but how to convince my heart?

TBR Challenge: Mistress of the Art of Death; Ariana Franklin

I picked this title to read for the TBR Challenge over at Keishon's blog Avid Reader. Link to Ms. Franklin's site is in the title above. This title was published in the US by Putnam's Sons in 2007. The image here is of the audio edition becaue the cover is brighter & sharper than the others I found. I read the book. Image from Audioeditions.com MOTAOD is set in 1171 Cambridge England. I was captured by the jacket sleeve description and the cover image. I absolutely love historical mysteries, especially ones that start with a bang and capture my interest right off the bat. Which happens less often than you might think.

Beginning in the previous year several children have been brutally murdered. The convenient scapegoat was the local Jewish population, who have since been locked in the sheriff's castle for their own protection. The King is in a politically and financially delicate situation. He needs the Jews released because they are, in effect, the nation's bankers. He's also responsible for the safety of the population, and perhaps he should try to see that justice is served. Er. So how to exact justice without unduly roiling the peasants or the Church? Because, you know, the murder of Thomas a Becket caused Henry no end of problems. This is an actual event: four of Henry's men behead Becket in church during the vespers service. The aftermath of Becket's murder has a direct impact on Adelia & her investigation into the deaths, which is why I raise this point here. Hmm. Now that I think of it, one of Adelia's suspects shares a name with one of the known participants in Becket's murder. Nice touch. Icky though. *shiver*

Arriving in England from Salerno Italy are Adelia Aguilar, a female physician specializing in death and decomposition; Simon Menahem, an elderly man in the employ of the King of Sicily & her escort and a tall, imposing Muslim named Mansur who happens to be Adelia's servant. Along the main road to Cambridge Adelia has the great good fortune to come across Prior Geoffrey, an Augustinian with significant power and influence in the region. In rescuing Prior Geoffrey from an enlarged prostate, Adelia wins herself an ally who is able to set her up in Cambridge and set the trio off on the right foot. Also playing meaningful roles are Gyltha the housekeeper (and Geoffrey's former paramour) and her nine year old grandson Ulf. Oh yes, remember too the smelly dog Safeguard.

Anyhow. First, this is not history lite. Second, I will warn you that the end section of the book is exceptionally gruesome without being explicit. Third, the relationship between Adelia and Sir Roland Picot the King's tax collector is prickly- yet also disarming & realistic. A nice touch. I like them together, they balance each other. All of the characters are drawn in with a very sharp attention to detail, very realistic and rounded. I admit to figuring out the identity of the 'bad guy', but it took me a good while and I really wasn't 100% sure until the end.

An excellent book. I plan to collect this author.

February Synopsis

Read very little, actually. Very slow month. Listed in the order I read them. All books reviewed, link provided. In the case of the DNF I linked to my thought process & talked about why I didn't finish.

1. The Skinny; Rayni Joan

2. The Girl of His Dreams; Donna Leon

3. In Defense of Food; Michael Pollan

4. The Draining Lake; Arnaldur Indridason

5. Stranger in my Arms; Lisa Kleypas


Did Not Finish

Helen of Troy; Margaret George more information here.

Succession series; Scott Westerfeld

This is a space opera written by young adult author Scott Westerfeld, who is also known for the Uglies series and Peep. Mr. Westerfeld originally wrote this as one manuscript, but according to his website in the United States The Risen Empire was split into two books at the behest of “a large book chain”. Thus, in the United States it is available in two volumes. The Risen Empire and The Killing Fields are the two titles in the U.S. In the United Kingdom it was published in its original format as one volume titled: The Risen Empire, ISBN 0-7394-3801-8. The two volumes are a continuation of one story. Do not begin The Risen Empire without also having The Killing of Worlds as well. After reading this I hope Mr.Westerfeld writes more books in this world, I really enjoyed these novels.

The setup is a plot within a plot involving politics, religion and technology. Deception. Fear of the unknown. Secrets. The overarching plot is relatively straightforward. You have two competing empires fighting over one planet, Legis XV. The Risen Empire of the title is a conglomeration of eighty worlds ruled by the Emperor and his little Sister, who is known as the Child Empress. The Rix’ (the competing empire) preferred method of conquest is by propigating so called ‘hive mind’ or ‘compound mind’ computer entities made up of all computers on a given world on planets they’ve conquered. The Emperor & his government & their peoples disagree. They feel that people should control the machines, not the other way around. All of this comes to a head on the planet Legis XV when the Rix manage to take the Child Empress hostage. Thus all of the might of the Risen World Empire is brought to bear to rescue her.

The other plot involves the military officer, Laurent Zai, of the Risen Empire, his ship Lynx, both of whom were sent to Legis and the highest political officials of the Emperor and a cover up. Due to the distances and the time required for travel, the story evolves across two planets, Legis and the Emperor’s home planet (simply called Home) as well as the frigate space ship which spends much of its time in an ongoing fight. Kind of like a fight between the giant navy ships of the early 19th century, space battles involve lots of physics and educated guesses about the enemy’s tactics and pushing your crew and your ship to the limits of its physical capabilities. Similar to chess, except with real people as the stakes.

This is my first foray into ‘space opera’ and I have to say I enjoyed it very much. Lots of adventure and edge of your seat military operations with a bit of romance and treachery thrown in for good measure. Mr. Westerfeld wraps up just enough threads to satisfy this reader and leave me hungry for more. Very highly recommended.

UK Edition

Images found on Macmillan and Powells.

Bathroom Photos- Finally :)

The photos are late because one the kids had taken the camera to school & I had to wait for them to bring it back home. I'm unsure why the second & third photos are so yellow tinged, but the first photo is the actual color of the room. The tiles, as you can tell, are authentic 1950's era black and peach/pink. I'm not wedded to the shower curtain, necessarily, but I've not looked at new ones either.

Any ideas? As I said, we're renting & I can't make major changes. The room faces NE and is only 7'X 5'.

Need Painting Advice

This post is inspired by Cindy at Nocturnal Wonderings. Our bathroom is desperately in need of a facelift. First off, we are renting our duplex, so I can't redo the tile or the floor. The one window is frosted glass, ancient but operable, nearly 60 years old, original to the building. Between the rust and the mold, it drives me batty. When we first painted the apartment I took it apart, sanded it down & used wire brushes to get rid of the rust and then painted it all over with Rustoleum. It worked fine. Now it's about 5 years later and I desperately need to redo it all. The whole bathroom, not only the window.

The room faces northeast, so it tends to be dark. Currently it's a medium to dark olive green. Olive was a bad idea. I like it, but it's too dark. Ferns love this room. There is no exhaust fan. The landlord had to come in and redo the floors and part of the walls due to faulty plumbing. They painted the lower half of the walls a cheap oyster white that runs if you touch it while the wall is damp after showers. It's also unscrubbable. Yuck. Originally I thought I'd put up a chair rail and maybe some paper over the lower part & leave the upper half alone. I still might do that. I want some input though.

I'm nothing if not indecisive. The room is only 7' X 5' (a glorified closet) and faces NE. I'll put photos up later this afternoon so you can see what I'm talking about.

1. I want a lighter color to brighten the room. The hallway outside the bath is butter yellow. I'm not a person whose entire house has to be color coordinated, although it's likely a good idea in such a small place. Any ideas?

2. I can't put in an exhaust fan, as neither of us has enough electrical knowledge to install one safely. We're willing, but don't know enough.

3. Do you think chair rail & wallpaper on the lower half will make the room feel smaller? I doubt the room could feel smaller than it already is, but you never know.

Please help me think. Any ideas or input are welcome. I won't start this project until April and I'll put photos up when I'm done.

Busy Weekend

Sorry I've not been here all weekend, the weather was gorgeous & we were busy. If you left comments between last Thursday and Sunday I've replied. Every week I tell myself I need to write up a few posts to schedule but I almost never actually write them. Somehow, I'm not often organized enough or I don't have ideas to post about & can't natter on about nothing for days on end (believe it or not, lol).

Saturday~

We drove down to My Lovely Sister's house and had a wonderful Irish lunch (corned beef and cabbage) and played outside in the sun with Nephews 1 & 2. Little nephew 2 swatted Hubby with a badminton racquet just above the right elbow on the inner arm- the spot is now as big as my palm & black. Hubby just laughs and says the nephew has a great arm & that Hubby will simply have to pay more attention next time. LOL :) Little nephew 2 and I played frisbee together. Hubby turns out to be correct, the kid has an arm. He regularly tossed the frisbee directly to me or within arm's reach. My lack of hand eye coordination was what made the whole thing funny to watch.

After a fun family afternoon, we were driving home (it's about an hour and forty five minutes), Pianist and Anime Queen were snoozing in the back seat. Hubby looks at me as I'm trying to stay awake beside him. "So, sweetie, what are we serving for coffee hour at church tomorrow?" O. M. G. !! I totally forgot. Therefore: no food bought or made. Generally there is a twelve week sign up sheet for coffee hour hosts after the eleven o'clock service at church. I signed up for one in January & then forgot & we weren't even in church that day! *BLUSH* So, I really felt bad that I'd forgotten again. Jeez. Later that night we bought two small cheesecakes, a pineapple, some dip and veggies for a veggie tray & we were set.

Then we realize that Sunday morning was "spring forward" day. As in- move the clocks ahead an hour at 0200 (am). Here we thought it was only 11:30 pm & in fact it was actually 12:30 am and we were all wide awake. We're slow in the morning & we'd have to leave for church at 9:30 to prep the food & set up for coffee hour. :(

Sunday~

Coffee hour went well, despite the er..lack of early preparation, not to mention lack of adequate sleep. We had fresh pineapple & watermelon slices & a veggie tray & two cheeses & & two quiches & pita chips plus juice, sherry & coffee. The sherry and the coffee are provided by the parishoners, thank goodness. *phew!* Most everything was gone except for some watermelon and pineapple chunks. We didn't return home until the middle of the afternoon. Yesterday was sunny & incredibly warm (73 F) & the house was 80 inside. Way, way too hot for March. We dragged out the fans and turned the air conditioning on to cool the house down. Then it was naptime for Hubby and me. The kids worked on homework all afternoon. Hubby roasted a delicious chicken with potatoes & carrots. A peaceful end to a gorgeous weekend.

I did manage to read a few pages in the Scott Westerfeld science fiction book I'm steadily working on. I totally ignored my email & my feed reader, both of which I will now go & winnow.

Graphic Novels & NY Times

Click link in the title above to read article. You may need to register to read it, that's free. The New York Times will be ranking best selling graphic novels, including manga. I read several manga online & I enjoy them quite a bit. They're a little too rich for my blood, especially since they're so quick to read, but I'm hopeful our libraries will buy some series to keep the kids happy. I hope to order some from the library, notably Persepolis (sp??) and Watchmen. I hope to use the list to find others.

There is also a new site, related to Bookreporter.com, called Graphic Novel Reporter that has all kinds of new info, including a blog and a newsletter, all related to graphic novels.

Miscellaneous

First: Found via Walker of Worlds Random House has started a new site called Suduvu, where you can download books from them & they're offering five titles free this month! They are: His Majesty’s Dragon by Naomi Novik, Assassin’s Apprentice by Robin Hobb, Settling Accounts: Return Engagement by Harry Turtledove, Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson and Blood Engines by T.A. Pratt. If you sign up for their emails they will notify you when they have more free titles (monthly?). I downloaded the Naomi Novik title.

Second: I'm giving up on the Helen of Troy audiobook, strictly because it's too long, I'm too far behind & I keep forgetting them in the car & they go back and forth to work with Hubby. :( I've no renewals left.

Third: I'm currently buried under a windfall of library treasures, most of which are on their second renewal. I just picked up three more today & another is coming via interlibrary loan.

Fourth: My reading pace is slowing down. Like the famous molasses flood in January in Boston- sssslllllooowwwwweeeerrrrr and sssslllooowwwwwweeeerrrr and sssssllllooooowwwwwweeeeerrrrrrrr..

Bubbadawg

If you’re a regular Bookwormom reader you might remember me mentioning a new contributor to the chaos that is life here in Bookwormom Central. He’s about a year and a half old, which we’re told is a teenager in dogdom. Dunno about that last one, I read it somewhere. The inmates are now as follows: three teenagers (two humans and one dog), one Husband and one college student. Plus me. I’m probably the craziest of them all, truth be told.

Anyhow, I’m in a kind of reviewing dead zone right now. I’m in the middle of two rather large books & I read slowly. So I thought I’d discuss our newest family member. The last dog we loved lived with us for nine years. Sophie was a sheltie mix rescue dog. We loved her so much, there are so many cute stories I could tell you. But as is common she eventually reached a point where we had to be merciful and put her to sleep to end her suffering. After that it took us several years before we were willing to look for another family friend.

Our new friend’s name is either Sammy, the name he arrived with, or Bubba, the name we’ve christened him. After doing some brief searching we discovered that Bubba is probably an English Coonhound. A red tick coonhound. According to what I’ve read coonhounds are descendants of English hunting dogs. Anyhow, English Coonhounds are an American breed, common in areas where there’s a lot of hunting. As in- not here in suburbia. Anyhow, since coonhounds are a southern breed we wanted to give him a regional name. Thus: Bubba. Not that he answers to it, mind you.

He’s kind of freckled with white and copper in coin sized patches all over. Sort of like someone let him roll in cinnamon sugar & then turned it all into fur. His ears and head are mostly the copper color with a little splotch of white in the middle of his head. His fur is short and thick and coarse. He waves his tail in big round circles straight over his back. He looks like he’s a helicopter when he’s excited.

Just lately we’ve started calling him Cagney, after the famous actor who made gangsters famous. Remember how Cagney would sneer/snarl/curl his lip? I swear the dog wrinkles his upper lip on one side just like Cagney did. Honest.
How Bubba ended up here in suburbia is a long story. Ten days before Christmas we drove out to a rescue event looking for a dog to adopt. I asked one of the foster families which dog was the friendliest and was immediately handed Bubba’s leash. Hubby was with me and we hung out & chatted and were interviewed, etc.

Finally we pieced together his story. Bubba was found along a roadside out in Bristol VA (extreme opposite corner of the state, near TN; very rural area) as a small puppy. Someone rescued him and paired him with a family who kept him in an outdoor kennel with a large number of other dogs. He was there for quite a while before he was passed along to another foster family who kept lots of dogs in an outdoor kennel. This person drove a truck full of foster dogs way up here from Bristol to try and find these dogs homes. He needed another foster family to take him or for Bubba to be adopted out. His kennels were crowded & he needed to thin out the dogs if he could. Hubby’s theory is that Bubba was going to be someone’s hunting dog and was either separated from his owner while hunting or he escaped from a home or a pen.

There we were. Interested, but not thinking we’d take a dog home that day. For various reasons we were asked to take Bubba home on a trial basis as a foster family planning to become his permanent family once the papers and visits were finalized. We were handed his leash and his papers and here we are two months later. Bubba is ours.

He fits in pretty well. We had to housebreak him- kennel dogs not needing housebreaking. I have to say, though, that he’s a quick learner when he wants to be. LOL  Hotdogs being a great motivator! Other than being housebroken he has very little manners training. Many of the behaviors you see in young puppies have started showing up in him, we assume that’s because he spent so much time kenneled & away from people. He’s fun and energetic, even when we walk him on our usual three mile loop he’s raring to go a short time later. Bubba seems to be a man’s dog: he goes crazy when Hubby or Pianist comes home, but less so for Anime Queen or me. He’ll cuddle with the Hubster, but not with the ladies.

We’re working on the manners. It’ll be a long struggle I think. He’s stubborn & willing to take a couple of miles if you give him an inch. We love him though & don’t want to go back to a quiet dogfree house.

Stranger in my Arms; Lisa Kleypas

I reread this for the Reread Challenge, link also on sidebar. I’ve had this book on my keeper shelves for so long I completely forgot what it was about. How it survived last year’s keepers purge I don’t know, but I’m really glad it did. You see, I live in a very small duplex with two teenagers, my husband and our dog, not to mention the college student who’s here over breaks. It’s a bit crowded. In an effort to do my part and reduce the clutter (gulp) I decided to weed out my keepers to provide a little shelving room. I told myself that I should only keep the ones where I can remember the plot or why I loved the book, even in a very general sense: it made me laugh, it made me cry, an unusual hero or heroine, etc. I turned a whole bunch of books in to my local library for their monthly ‘friends’ sale. It was painful, but necessary. I don’t even recall who I traded, to be honest.

Somehow, Stranger in my Arms made it through the purge. This title was written by Lisa Kleypas and published in 1998. Childless twenty four year old widow Larissa, dowager Countess of Hawksworth, is abruptly informed that her supposedly deceased husband, Hunter, has shown up in England hale and quite alive. The male relative who had taken his place is understandably suspicious. Hunter and Larissa were unhappily married and were living separate lives when Hunter sailed for India. It was thought he’d died in a shipwreck.

Before I go on, can I just say that I find the probability of a man in the English aristocracy being christened Hunter so improbable as to be ridiculous? And that his wife would refer to him by his first name (as opposed to his title or Hawksworth) in public? The other annoying issue is that her name is Larissa, but everyone calls her Lara- even in situations where she should be called by her title or at least my lady or something similar. Why name your heroine one name and then call her by another? For some readers these issues would be minor, but for me they were annoying. My biggest problem with SIMA is that Larissa was shunted off into a moldy rundown game keepers cottage on the estate with very little money and no servants or chaperones or a companion- yet she was the dowager Countess. Am I to believe her family was so unconcerned with her future security that this would have been allowed in her settlements or otherwise?

I continued to read though, because the crux of the whole book came down to this: does one seize a second chance at love or does one shun the proffered crown because of ideology? Hunter is not who he claims to be. Larissa, while doubtful, comes to appreciate this man for how he treats her even while her own doubts assail her. When she finally learns the truth, Larissa must decide: carpe diem or stand alone on the plinth of ideology? It is no small thing, this deception of ‘Hunter’s’. To take on the identity of another and fully take over his life. Yet, I rooted for him, for her, for them.

Larissa for her part tends toward the Mary Sue: naïve, willfully innocent of many things a Countess should not be, unworldly, compliant and submissive to the point of impoverishing herself, yet ending up on her feet despite a situation that would’ve daunted most women. As the book goes on Larissa shows some backbone and stands up for what she believes in, demands that Hunter respect her person and her needs. She learns to push back against Hunter more than she was able to before he reappeared. Larissa deliberately sets Hunter up in an embarrassing public confrontation, partly out of pique but also to show him that he cannot simply trifle with her.

Ms. Kleypas made all of these conventions come alive for me, even while I had some serious issues with the details. I’m glad I kept it.


Image found on Fantastic Fiction

The Draining Lake; Arnaldur Indridason

I love a good mystery, especially ones where I think I've turned into Miss Marple and figured it all out but then I'm properly pushed back down into my place. Mr. Indridason has written one of those books. I'm new to his work, but his name has buzzed around for a while and I was lucky enough to come across this one in the library. Americans are finally getting better access to books in translation (even genre!) which makes me very happy. There are lots of great stories out in the wide wide world and monolingual people like me miss lots of them unless the God of Publishing takes mercy on me and translates one.

Sunna, an hydrologist, discovers a partially submerged skeleton in a lake whose water is draining (the eponymous lake of the title). She calls the authorities & thus our whodunit begins. A trio of police inspectors: Erlendur, Elinborg and Oli are assigned to the case. Iceland being a small place, it's initially assumed that there will be little trouble figuring out who this guy is and how he was submerged in the lake with out of date Russian radio equipment tied to his legs. How long are the tentacles of the past?

Our intial story is wrapped around with one of an idealistic young man whose political leanings win him a scholarship to university in Leipzig East Germany. Eventually he learns that all is not what it seems. The ideals that burned so bright in Iceland became altogether another beast in the East Germany of the late 1960's and early 1970's. After a while I thought I'd figured out the who what where and when- but as I said above, I was wrong. I love the way Mr Indridason weaves together the present and the past, showing us that sometimes the past is closer than one might wish.

The Draining Lake is a wonderful mystery with strong overtones of John LeCarre's masterful cold war era spy novels. It took me a little while to wrap my mind around some of the unusual (to me anyway!) names, but that didn't deter me in the least. This is the American published edition, put out by MacMillan in September 2008. It is the fourth book in the series, the others being: Jar City, Voices and Silence of the Grave.

Helen of Troy Audiobook

I'm listening to the Margaret George audiobook Helen of Troy in the car. See image on sidebar. I thought I'd have plenty of time to listen to it. We're a commuter family and traffic here is notoriously clogged and slow. I think I've miscalculated though. This book, unabridged, is 25 discs (30+ hours). The longest audiobook I've borrowed so far had 16 discs & I got pretty obsessive about dragging the case everywhere with me. I've renewed Helen of Troy twice now & I'm only up to disc 7.

I love the voice of the narrator, who is British. I wonder that they couldn't find a Greek speaker or had an actor who could do a Greek accent. The British lady did a great job, but if they could find an Italian for Donna Leon and Niccolo Ammaniti, then they could've found a Greek actor for Margaret George. I'd really like that. It adds to the listener's experience of the book. Besides, the whole saga is unmistakably Greek, it would've been a tribute.

The niggling issue with this one is the tracks are not evenly spaced out. For example, on both of the BBC Audiobooks each disc was marked at three minute intervals, which turned out to be very easy and convenient. The tracks on Helen aren't evenly spaced, which is turning out to be an annoyance- especially on a book this large. What does this mean? Well, if I arrived at my destination and had to stop on disc 7 track 5- track five might be four minutes or it might be twelve & I can't get back to my exact place. I have to repeat the four or six minutes or whatever until I'm at the exact spot again. This might not sound like a big deal, but on a book that's 25 discs long? Those little minutes add up gang.

I'm at the point in the story where I really don't want to give it up- Helen and Paris have just met in Sparta. Helen was naive enough to seek out Aphrodite and beg her help without specifying what man she (Helen) would feel all of Love's power for. Poor stupid Helen. Led astray by a desire for orgasms. Seriously. I don't think I can quit the series now!

more animals



more animals


Just so you know what life has been like at Bookwormom Central