Into the Woods : Tales from the Hollows and Beyond

This book is a series of short stories that relate to the Hollows series :>)  Mainly they are backgrounds of characters in the Hollows series.

I love this book because I love to see the evolution of a character, from their past to the present years  told in the series, and how often something that has happened has greater impact on the person's personality than ever dreamed...

Let The Right One In by John Ajvide Lindqvist

I love vampire stories - both books and movies, and I was really excited when a friend suggested this one :>)  There is a movie version that I plan to watch after I finish the book :>)

The author grabs your interest immediately - I was tearing up before I had finished the first chapter !!

I haven't finished it yet, but so far, the plot is a middle-aged man who kills people and drains them of of their blood for the child-vampire that he takes care of...

There is some sexual innuendo - nothing explicit, but disturbing, nonetheless - which can be quickly skipped over...

There is also the character of  a teen boy who has a life that just makes you cry - and the child-vampire moves in next door to him...

 

The Hollows series by Kim Harrison

I'm rereading The Hollows series while awaiting books on hold :>)

I love this series because it is fantasy set in the modern world...

The general plot is that there was a terrible catastrophe, and a vast majority of the humans died :>(  However, in order to prevent the collapse of  modern civilization, the "Inderlanders" came forward and saved the day - vampires, witches, werewolves, etc. !!!

Turns out all those fairy-tales were somewhat garbled but true - for instance, all the fairy-tales end with "and they lived happily ever after", but it was supposed to read  "and they lived happily IN the ever after", because the "ever after" is a real, alternate world where, possibly, the Inderlanders came into our world from...

The protagonist is Rachel, a "Rosewood baby" witch, who with the help of her roommate, Ivy, a living vampire, and a pixy, Jenks,  and his family, fight human and Inderlander crime :>)  Rachel and Ivy are former IS (Inderland Security -  staffed by Inderlanders) agents that are now working free-lance for the IS, and who also work for the FIB (Federal Inderlander Bureau - staffed by humans). Both agencies are similar to our present-day FBI.

So, in essence these are "Mysteries" with a twist !!  There is some romance, but not really any sex, which makes it so much more enjoyable for me :>)

 

Starting anew!

Ok so, I just couldn't get into the book I was reading so I started a new one. It's actually a set of shorts by Philip K. Dick. So far, I've read 'Hope we arrive soon', 'Electric Ant' and another I don't recall. The two mentioned were very good! I'm really excited to read more and update you guys on all the details!

The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron

My sister, Lidia, and I decided to read this book and do the activities, as a 12-week "class" this summer :>)

At the beginning I religiously did every task assigned, and kept my notebooks - but now I find that I am weary of it, and so am just doing what pertains to me...

Lidia & I still discuss every chapter, and I do think it has helped us "jumpstart" our creativity to some extent...

My biggest problem with the book, I believe, is that it is really intended for "blocked" artists of all kinds, and the book is filled with "success" stories of artists who have overcome their block via Julia Cameron and her books !!

However, I am not a blocked artist, and feel that all the success-story fluff is boring !!!

I like the creativity tasks, but again, feel like there are too many of them !!

So, I would recommend it for someone who IS a blocked artist, or who just desires to be more creative, in any medium :>)

The Long War by Terry Pratchett & Stephen Baxter

This is actually the 2nd novel in the series, and I haven't read the 1st, so that sometimes makes the novel more mysterious !!!

I love both these authors, and was so excited to read their first collaboration :>)

The premise of this series is that the multi-verse theory is correct, and some people, unbeknownst to even themselves, are natural "steppers" - that is, they can step from 1 universe to another, unaided.

A billionaire - reminding me of Sir Richard Branson - who along with lots of other research he is bankrolling, ended up bankrolling a device that allows people to "step" from 1 universe to another.

So, for the benefit of mankind, this billionaire gives the stepper device free to everyone, and then sets up a fleet of "twains" (named after Mark Twain) that are reminiscent of zeppelins, to help people transverse the mulit-verses, for free.

For instance, if I am standing somewhere in Tulsa OK, and I click my stepper while taking 1 step, I will be in the next multi-verse, in the exact same spot, since all the multi-verses are copies of each other, with usually very small differences...you can only go "east" or "west" (not north or south) stepping, and so if I "step" into the next multi-verse, and then want to go to Utah in that multi-verse, I would have to either walk or take a twain.

At the part of the novel I've read up to, there are thousands of mult-verses, and not an end in sight...

There is a lot of discussion about human and animal rights, economies of "Data Earth" (our original),the "frontier earths, the unexplored earths, etc.

There is 1 multi-verse where a celestial body hit the Earth with such an impact, that it destroyed the Earth.  If you "step" from the one previous into that one, you "step" into outer space  (doesn't explain how they figured that out !!!), but they are utilizing that as a no-gravity space port. 

The Last Theorem by Sir Arthur C. Clarke and Frederik Pohl

Right now on my Kindle I'm reading The Last Theorem Sir Arthur C. Clarke and Frederik Pohl.  Pohl actually finished the novel, after's Clarke's death, as one of Clarke's last wishes. 

There is a lot of math and science contained in the book, as is typical of Clarke...the title refers to Fermat's last theorem, which has never been satisfactorily solved, and is a main part of the plot. 

Also, humorously, Clarke refers to himself several times, but in such a way that only those "in the know" would know :>)  For instance, for many years prior to his death, Clarke lived in Sri Lanka...at one point in the story, the young protagonist has become somewhat of a celebrity, and is complaining a bit about it, and he says something along the lines of, "well, I'm not the only celebrity in Sri Lanka, what about that famous writer ?"

Anyway, the novel's setting is just slightly in the future, and includes many elements from other Clarke novels, like the Space Elevator and aliens :>)

And, super-important to me - it has a happy ending !!

About me !!

Hey, it's been so long since I've been on a blog, I've forgotten how to maneuver around it !!! So please be understanding :>)

I usually read at least 2 books at a time simply because I take my Kindle to work everyday, and if I take it out of my purse to read at home, then I forget to put it back in the next morning to take to work !!!

My Nightly Read

Hey Y'all!

Sweet Thang here. I'm reading The Hobbit. I read the first bit before the first third of the movie came out. It's perfect for laying in bed and drifting to sleep with. Really gives my imagination some room for exercise before sleep. Also invites greatly adventurous dreams.

One of my most favorite parts was the where Gollum & Bilbo exchange riddles for death/dinner or a way out. The only one I could figure out without reading ahead is as follows:

Alive without breath, 

As cold as death;

Never thirsty, ever drinking, 

All in mail never clinking

Happy Reading =)

All about me!

I wouldn't consider myself to be an avid reader, but I'm hoping to change that.

My genres of choice would be:

- sci-fi
- fantasy
- detective
- historical fiction/non-fiction

I'm currently reading, 'Nuclear Jellyfish' by Tim Dorsey. Just started a couple nights ago, but at 27 pages in my first impressions would be that it's not typically what I'm used to reading. It's a humerus crime novel about a guy that starts his own internet travel blog for would-be Florida tourists. It's pretty R-rated at times, but the writer was perfect comedic timing. Can't recommend it just yet, but the writing style does make it an easy page turner.

First FunBookChat post!

This blog will (hopefully) become an open book forum for our joint families to share what they are reading, discuss books and just keep in touch.

The basic format:

- share what genres of books you enjoy reading

- tell the group what you are currently reading and your first impressions

- comment on other peoples book topics; ask about their book

- review your book once you have finished

Unlike a traditional book club, everyone doesn't need to read the same book at the same time; everyone gets to read their own books of choice. You can always start reading a book someone else has and then share your comments and reviews so the group and see the comparison.

Happy Reading!