Spring Reading Thing 2009

I am so excited about this challenge as I've always meant to join in on the fun and never have. So this will be my first year and I'm looking forward to participating. I had a hard time at first trying to figure out which books I wanted to read for this but then just went for a wide variety. Here they are in no particular order :) Oh yeah, sorry for double posting the past couple of days but my goal is to be completely caught up with reviews by the end of March.

• The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls


• I Choose To Be Happy by Missy Jenkins


• The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga


• Blindness by Jose Saramago


• The Girl She Used To Be by David Cristofano


• Kissing Sin by Keri Arthur


• Dead Man's Folly by Agatha Christie


• A Madness of Angels by Kate Griffin
  
• A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray


• The Traitor's Wife by Susan Higginbotham

I ended up using a mix of books that are either on my challenge lists or that need to be read from my ARC pile. I didn't want to list too many more and overwhelm myself so hopefully I can finish these....and I hope that 10 isn't too much :) In other challenge news, I should probably mention somewhere on my blog that I have joined the Classics Challenge, the 1% Well Read Challenge, and the Orbis Terrarum Challenge but since I'm not making lists for these I was lazy and didn't do separate posts. Sorry to the hosts! Anyways, I'm looking forward to hearing what everyone else is reading for the Spring Reading Thing and all that good stuff.

Library Loot - March 19th

Okay, it has been awhile since I did a library loot post. In fact, it has obviously been too long as I have a bunch to share. It all looks and sounds so good though that I couldn't resist. And I think you all know by now how much I love my library :) Plus, I went to the HUGE library on the other side of the river before my doctor's appointment the other day and found some gems. Including an arc of Honolulu by Alan Brennert for FREE! Yes, you read that correctly...they had a cart of books for free. It took all of my willpower to not snatch a bunch up and take them home. I figured that might be a bit greedy and that everyone deserved a chance to share in the joy of free books. Seriously, I was so excited as I LOVED Molokai by this author. Anyways, on to the loot:

The Rest Falls Away by Colleen Gleason- I've had this one on hold and it just came in. I love a good vampire novel so I'm looking forward to this!

The Water's Lovely by Ruth Rendell- I was just browsing the shelves when I found this one and the description sounded sooo good. I couldn't resist...

Aunt Dimity and the Duke by Nancy Atherton- This for the 2nds and Themed Reading Challenge (my theme is cozy mysteries)

What I Loved by Siri Hustvedt- This is for the 1% Well Read Challenge and I've heard lots of good things about this one.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins- Seriously, this one is all over the blogsphere....when I saw it on the shelves I snatched it up. I was practically jumping with joy :)

Dead Man's Folly by Agatha Christie- My book has this gorgeous black cover and is part of The Agatha Christie Mystery Collection so it doesn't actually look like this. The big library had these and they were so beautiful...plus I have a personal challenge to read all of her works.

Evernight by Claudia Gray- Another vampire novel that I've been wanting to read.






Annette Vallon by James Tipton- This is for a group read and I may or may not get to it but it does sound interesting.

Looking For Alaska by John Green- Another author that has been all over the blogsphere and then some. Sure does sound good!

Holy smokes! I've already overextended myself but these all sound so good. I'm currently reading Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman and it is so good. This is my first book by this author and she has me hooked. Also working on America and the Age of Genocide which I will get through eventually. It is such a chunker though! Happy reading everyone :)

Kitty Goes To Washington by Carrie Vaughn

The 2nd installment in the Kitty Norville series is just as good/if not better than the first. In this book we see Kitty's new life without her pack, away from Denver, and traveling all over the country. But then she is summoned to testify in front of a Senate panel group about the paranormal community and her life changes in ways that she never expected.

What a great addition to this series and a strong second book! Kitty is more independent in this book as well as more sure of herself which is a nice change. She comes across as the type of person that everyone might want to be if they were a werewolf :) The action in this one started right at the beginning and didn't let up until the last page. I was once again turning pages as fast as I possibly could. In fact, I gulped this book down in one long afternoon. I liked seeing more of Ben and Cormac in this book as well as some of the new characters that were introduced. I would love to see more of Luis, the sexy were-jaguar.

This was also a reread for me and you can read my review of this book the first time here. This was a great addition to this series and a fun read all around. All in all, this is becoming one of my favorite series and I can't wait to see what kind of trouble Kitty gets herself into next!

My Rating/Recommendations: 4 out of 5 and recommended to urban fantasy/paranormal romance lovers!

My Challenges: 100+ Book Challenge, Series 3 Challenge

Ramses, Volume I: Son of Light by Christian Jacq

I can't even begin to remember where I heard about this book but boy am I glad that I did. I was entranced by this novel which is about Ramses before he became king of Egypt. It begins with the first time that Ramses meets his father, the Pharoah of Egypt and Ramses is fourteen years old. From then on Ramses is never sure if his father is training him to be the next Pharoah or whether his destiny might lie as something other than king. The book continues on with the struggles that Ramses faces as well as the triumphs. Because not everyone wants Ramses to come to power including Ramses' older brother who plans on being Pharoah himself.

I loved this book! I was transported into Ancient Egypt with this novel and I was entralled. The writing was gorgeous and I was marking passages to share left and right. The best part of the book though was that the author captured my interest and I was caught up within the story. There were times that I just couldn't put the book down. Ramses was a strong and likeable character but realistic at the same time. He wasn't without his flaws and as the reader I wanted to see him overcome his enemies and become the future Pharoah. I'm really looking forward to the 2nd book in this series! Here is a little teaser to share a taste of this wonderful novel:

"A courageous man goes to the limit of his strength. A king goes beyond it. If that is not in you, you are not meant to rule and we will never see each other again. No test should daunt you. Leave, if you wish; otherwise, capture the bull."

All in all, this was a wonderful novel that I highly recommend to anyone that enjoys historical fiction. I'll be requesting the next one from the library asap. And this was my 3rd and final selection for the historical fiction reading challenge. I completed a challenge...woohoo :) I'll be posting a wrap-up soon for this one.

My Rating/Recommendations: 4.5 out of 5 and recommended to anyone who enjoys historical fiction!
Challenges: Historical Fiction Reading Challenge, New Author challenge, 100+ Book Challenge, Support Your Library Challenge, A-Z Challenge ("J" Author), 1st in a Series Challenge

The Crimes of Paris Giveaway!!

Hi guys! I'm lucky enough to be able to giveaway a copy of The Crimes of Paris by Dorothy and Thomas Hoobler. It is only open to U.S. and Canda residents though and cannot be sent to a P.O. Box. But those are the only rules :) So if you want a chance to win leave a valid email address in the comments section of this post and I will draw a winner on Sunday March 22nd.

Book Information:Turn-of-the-century Paris was the beating heart of a rapidly changing world. Painters, scientists, revolutionaries, poets--all were there. But so, too, were the shadows: Paris was a violent, criminal place, its sinister alleyways the haunts of Apache gangsters and its cafes the gathering places of murderous anarchists. In 1911, it fell victim to perhaps the greatest theft of all time--the taking of the Mona Lisa from the Louvre.Immediately, Alphonse Bertillon, a detective world-renowned for pioneering crime-scene investigation techniques, was called upon to solve the crime. And quickly the Paris police had a suspect: a young Spanish artist named Pablo Picasso....Please visit www.hooblerauthors.com

Doesn't that sound interesting? I have a copy myself that I will be reviewing next month. Good luck to everyone :)

Kitty and The Midnight Hour by Carrie Vaughn

Kitty and The Midnight Hour introduces the reader to Kitty Norville who is a late night radio DJ and also a werewolf. Kitty begins talking about the paranormal on her radio show and before she knows what is happening the show begins to get requests and call ins like no other. All of a sudden, Kitty is being thrust into the limelight and not all of the supernatural creatures are happy about it especially members of her own pack.

This was a reread for me as I orginally read this one I believe before I started blogging. I jumped at the chance to participate with a blog tour over this series and decided to start from the beginning. I remember liking this one the first time and the 2nd reading of it didn't disappoint. I did have some qualms the first time I read it as I felt like Kitty didn't stand up enough for herself. This time I didn't feel that way at all which is probably because I've read the 2nd book and know that she begins to stand up more for herself (sorry if that is a spoiler). I've only read the first two books though and I am anxious to see where the author will take us. I love Kitty's character as she comes across as such a down to earth person. She truly cares about the important people in her life and you can't help but hope that things work out for her.

All in all, I enjoyed the chance to reread this book and it feels like I'm beginning the series anew. Be on the lookout as I review the next couple of books in the next couple of weeks and stop by on the 25th for the final review! I'm so excited to see where Kitty goes next. Great series so far!

My Rating/Recommendations: 4 out of 5; Recommended to those who enjoy urban fantasy or paranormal romance

Challenges: A-Z Challenge ("V" Author), 100+ Book Challenge, 1st in a Series Challenge

And here is a link to my original post on this book...it was when I first started blogging :)

Guest Post with Terry Spear

How fun to have yet another author blogging today. I should have made March guest author post month or something fun like M.G.A.P. (ok, that wasn't very fun but it was the best that I came up with). Today, I am lucky enough to share a post from Terry Spear, author of Destiny of the Wolf. I just posted my review of this book so when you are finished reading this go check it out :0) And without further ado...

Ticking Time Bombs
By Terry Spear

Ever read a story that doesn’t have one? If so, was it booooring? We’ve got to have them to make the reader want to see what happens in this lifetime, not the next!

In Lord of the Rings, the ring must be destroyed before the evil guy gets hold of it.

In Gone with the Wind, Scarlet O’Hara has to save her plantation home before she loses it.

In Destiny of the Wolf, the heroine is determined to discover who murdered her sister and make the villain pay. But not only does that person not want her to expose him for what he is, her own pack is looking for her and they’re bad news. She knows the longer she stays in the area, the greater chance she has of ending up like her sister or getting caught by her pack and forced to return home against her will. So there’s definite immediacy to the situation.
Excerpt from Destiny of the Wolf:
“More than ever, she had to avenge her sister’s murder and leave. The longer she stayed, the higher the risk Bruin would locate her. Probably Darien would want to contact the leader and tell him what happened to her sister and Lelandi. Sense of honor. Then Bruin would force her to return home.”

In Heart of the Wolf, Bella has to leave her pack behind in a hurry. Not tomorrow. But now. Excerpt:

“She bolted, with her legs stretched far out, her heart pounding, her breath steady, but her mind frantic...her only chance was to toss her clothes and run like the wolf.”

In the first novel I ever wrote, the span of time for the story was a year. A year to deal with tons of issues, but a year was way too much time for the story to drag on.

So when creating a story, I factor in urgency, which helps to create conflict. Think of a scenario where a Cub Scout is baking a cake from scratch and everything works out fine. No urgency, no conflict. Boring. But let’s say the Cub Scout has all the ingredients out but one, and that one isn’t in the kitchen. And the cake has to be ready in two-hours time. And we live in the country. So it takes half an hour driving time just to run into town to get the missing ingredient. Let’s say the ingredient is now in the kitchen, and the Cub Scout makes the cake, trims it into a Star Wars spaceship. It’s sitting nice and pretty on the high kitchen counter waiting for the icing, and then will be taken to the Bake Auction, which is one of the most fun Cub Scout events they have. But his standard poodle who is a chocolate stealing thief swipes it. Okay, now yes I write urban fantasy. But yes, this is a totally true story. And yes, the dog got sick, which is the reason we had the cake up on the high counter. But that didn’t detour her and we never thought in a million years she’d do that anyway.

So we have even greater urgency. The Bake Auction is looming even closer. Cub Scout is at wits end. It has to be a cake made from scratch, but there’s not enough time to make another one like that. So we whip out the box cake mix and despite being so disappointed that he’s “cheating” with making a box cake, he starts all over.

Ticking time bombs. They have to be sprinkled throughout the story to make it work. So what happened with the Star Wars cake? Friends kept bidding the price higher so that the Cub Scout’s dad HAD to buy it at the highest price at the auction. Had to! Because the Cub Scout had to have a piece of that cake that he’d worked so hard to make—twice.

So can you think of books that kept you riveted in your seat because of the time bombs planted throughout the story?

Thanks so much for dropping by and hope you will check out my books that are filled with conflict, romance, and mystery!

Terry Spear
And join me at this locations, too!
www.terryspear.com
http://wickedlyromantic.blogspot.com
http://casablancaauthors.blogspot.com
http://shapeshifterromance.wordpress.com/
http://www.myspace.com/terryspear
http://twitter.com/TerrySpear
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=698072929http://www.myspace.com/terryspear
http://wickedlyromantic.blogspot.com/2009/03/talk-about-sexual-frustration.html (Here I'm talking about sexual frustration in the strangest of places! But check out our Mascot, AKA The Blond Muddy Guy!)

I just want to thank Terry Spear for this post and taking the time out to write it. I didn't realize that there was another book out by her (Heart of the Wolf) and I am going to have to reserve it at the library. Thanks again Terry!!!

Destiny of the Wolf by Terry Spear

Lelandi Wildhaven comes to town with one thing on her mind: find her sister's murderer and then avenge her death. What she isn't prepared for is falling for her late sister's husband and finding herself in serious danger. There are a ton of suspects to choose from as none of the females and some of the males in the pack are happy that Lelandi is there and think that she is after her sister's husband and the leader of the pack Darien. And the question remains as to whether Lelandi can find her sister's killer or not...

Where do I begin with this one? This was a good read for me. I really enjoyed the mystery of this story and was constantly trying to figure out who the "bad guy" was. I never did figure it out which made the suspense constant for me. I was turning the pages trying to see what would happen next as fast as I could. I liked the chemistry between Darien and Lelandi especially since Lelandi was portrayed as an alpha female werewolf. It made it seem like she was more of an equal to Darien which I thought was refreshing. My one complaint with this book was the multiple points of view and the way it would change back and forth between the characters. I would have to go back and reread at times as I wouldn't know who was talking at that point. It ended up being confusing at times especially at the beginning when everyone thought that Lelandi was her sister Larissa. Otherwise though I did like this book and am glad that I had a chance to read it. Terry Spear was a new to me author and I will be looking for more of her books in the future. Overall, a good read :)

My Rating/Recommendations: 3.5 out of 5; Recommended to paranormal romance lovers or anyone that enjoys a good romance!

Challenges: New Author Challenge, 100+ Book Challenge, A-Z Challenge ("S" Author)

Her Royal Spyness by Rhys Bowen

Lady Victoria Georgiana Charlotte Eugenie, otherwise known as Georgie, is 34th in line to the throne which basically amounts to not much. She decides to move out of her brother's house and into a small family owned house in London to make her own way. But then she gets caught up into a mystery involving her family and it looks like someone might be trying to kill her.

Her Royal Spyness is a fun beginning to this series that I will be looking forward to reading more of. I'll start by saying that this was such a fun read for me. I didn't even realize I had flew through the first hundred pages as I was just caught up in the story. Georgie has to try to make her own money which means finding a job which is unusual for a women like her. It was fun to read about her exploits throughout the novel and I enjoyed my time with her. The novel is set in the 1930's and it was filled with the atmosphere and details from that time period. I just loved it! This book had a Stephanie Plum-esque feel to it as the main character never knew what she was doing and caused more trouble than anything. All in all, a fun and enjoyable read and I will be looking forward to reading more by this author. It reminded me that I enjoy cozy mysteries once in awhile and was a great beginning to my theme for the Themed Reading Challenge.

My Rating/Recommendations: 4 out of 5; Recommended to anyone who enjoys a good cozy mystery

Challenges: New Author Challenge, Themed Reading Challenge, Support Library Challenge, 100+ Book Challenge, 1st in a Series Challenge, A-Z Challenge ("B" Author), TBR Challenge (Alternate), Winter Reading Challenge

The Sunday Salon- March Madness

This Sunday I thought I would share what I'm currently reading as well as what I plan on reading later this month. A beginning to March madness but with books rather than basketball. LOL! Let's get started with what I'm currently reading. I'm still working my way through America and the Age of Genocide. I'm in the midst of the Iraq chapter and have to admit that it isn't the easiest to read. It isn't the writing though, it is the fact that sometimes it is just too sad and sickening for me so I set the book aside. I've learned so much from this book though which makes me glad that I'm reading it. I am also reading Don't Cry Wolf by Terry Spear. I'm not too far into it yet but so far so good. It works really well as the opposite of America and the Age of Genocide so it is easy for me to switch back and forth.

After I'm finished with Don't Cry Wolf though I will be working on the 2nd book in the Kitty Norville series. I recently reread the 1st book in the series and will be posting a review of it this week. I have a blog tour for this series so I will be continuing on with this series and watch out on March 25th for my review of Kitty Raises Hell by Carrie Vaughn. I'm so excited about these :)

I've got a bunch of review books that I need to get to and one that I am really looking forward to is Red-Headed Stepchild by Jaye Wells. This is an urban fantasy (one of my favorite genres) and the reviews I've read on it so far have me excited to read it. Plus, check out that cover...so excited about it!

Also on the review front is The Girl She Used to Be by David Cristofano. This is about a girl in the witness protection program and the front cover asks the question, "How do you know who you are if you can't reveal who you've been?" Doesn't that sound intriguing? I can't wait to read it!

On the library front, I returned a bunch of books this week that were coming due and I knew I wouldn't be able to get to. It didn't stop me from checking out more and I will be posting my library loot post later this week. The one book that I am SO excited about finding as I've been hearing about it all over the blogsphere is The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. I snatched that one up as soon as I walked into the YA section. I've got a bunch of other library books that sound good too so hopefully I'll find the time :)

So that is what I have to look forward to for the rest of the month. What about you, is there something you have that you are dying to read this month? Leave me a comment and let me know what it is and I'll add it to my TBR list. As always, have a great Sunday!