And then I went back to Dresden Land.
In this particular adventure, something is attacking some of Harry's friends in their dreams, in the guise of a demon they all beat the snot out of some time previously. Also, vampires, who are probably up to no good.
I think my favorite part of this one was Harry spending about half the book with most of his magic gone. (Also, CHARITY CARPENTER IS KIND OF AWESOME.) but for now, I'm out of Dresden books, so I'm off to other writerly pastures.
I might be back, though.
12 October 2010
book the sixth (sort of): One Step Beyond
In between Fool Moon and Grave Peril, I picked up One Step Beyond: Rocking Tales of the Fantastical to finish off the last story I hadn't read in it.
I admit I'm a little biased about this particular anthology; one of the stories in it is mine. The anthology is a collection of short stories that took rock and roll and gave it a sci-fi or fantasy twist. There's time travel, there's ghosts, there's dimension-hopping with Special Guest Stars John Lennon and Syd Barrett - it's fun times for the whole family!
Sadly, the press folded a few months after the book was published; given that, I'm not sure if the book is still listed on Amazon. If it is, though, I highly recommend checking it out.
I admit I'm a little biased about this particular anthology; one of the stories in it is mine. The anthology is a collection of short stories that took rock and roll and gave it a sci-fi or fantasy twist. There's time travel, there's ghosts, there's dimension-hopping with Special Guest Stars John Lennon and Syd Barrett - it's fun times for the whole family!
Sadly, the press folded a few months after the book was published; given that, I'm not sure if the book is still listed on Amazon. If it is, though, I highly recommend checking it out.
book the fourth: Fool Moon
Goodness, but I've fallen behind on this thing. And I haven't even covered the Jim Butcher reading I did!
Anyway: I read Storm Front a couple years ago, and liked it well enough to continue with Harry Dresden's adventures, at least for a while. Fool Moon was a lot of fun; I think my favorite bit was the fact that there's more than the one kind of werewolf in this 'verse.
I also love - and I can't say much more than this without getting into spoilerific territory - that Butcher isn't afraid to make Harry an incredibly unreliable narrator when the plot calls for it.
Anyway: I read Storm Front a couple years ago, and liked it well enough to continue with Harry Dresden's adventures, at least for a while. Fool Moon was a lot of fun; I think my favorite bit was the fact that there's more than the one kind of werewolf in this 'verse.
I also love - and I can't say much more than this without getting into spoilerific territory - that Butcher isn't afraid to make Harry an incredibly unreliable narrator when the plot calls for it.
03 February 2010
book the third: Reaper Man
After the wacky Victorian time-travel hijinks, I went back to something familiar and revisited Pratchett Land. Reaper Man is earlier in the Discworld chronology than Jingo, but it's every bit as enjoyable, if not more so.
The Auditors of Reality, in one of their earlier efforts to make the universe a nice, orderly place without all these pesky life forms mucking everything up, fire Death, intending to replace him with someone who'll do a little less thinking about the job. Death goes off on his own, takes up a job, and decides to Do Something About This re: the Auditors. Meanwhile, nothing is dying like it ought to, and the excess life force causes problems; these problems range from the hilarious (the words of wizards have power, as do swear words; put the two together and hijinks ensue!) to the downright creepy (you'll want to keep an eye on those odd little snowglobes...).
Among other reasons to love this book: It's the first one with Reg Shoe. He gets more awesome once you know more of his backstory, but Reg the Zombie Activist is just as awesome as Reg the Watchman, or Reg the Living Activist.
The Auditors of Reality, in one of their earlier efforts to make the universe a nice, orderly place without all these pesky life forms mucking everything up, fire Death, intending to replace him with someone who'll do a little less thinking about the job. Death goes off on his own, takes up a job, and decides to Do Something About This re: the Auditors. Meanwhile, nothing is dying like it ought to, and the excess life force causes problems; these problems range from the hilarious (the words of wizards have power, as do swear words; put the two together and hijinks ensue!) to the downright creepy (you'll want to keep an eye on those odd little snowglobes...).
Among other reasons to love this book: It's the first one with Reg Shoe. He gets more awesome once you know more of his backstory, but Reg the Zombie Activist is just as awesome as Reg the Watchman, or Reg the Living Activist.
book the second: To Say Nothing of the Dog
...So maybe I should get back to this, since I've got the project going.
My second break book was To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis. It came highly recommended, and more than lived up to that recommendation.
The time travel facilities at Oxford University have been overrun by Lady Schrapnell's efforts to rebuild Coventry Cathedral, largely because one of her ancestors had a life-changing experience there. But then one of the researchers brings something back with her that she shouldn't have been able to - and a wild chase ensues to set things right again. Most of the book takes place in the Victorian era (when the ancestor in question had the life-changing experience).
The poor POV character is overworked and under-prepared when he gets tapped to deal with 1888; the beauty of that is the reader learns the ins and outs of Victorian society along with him. It's hilarious and touching in turns, and very much worth not spoiling the ending. If you like wacky time-travel hijinks or historical fiction, give this a try.
My second break book was To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis. It came highly recommended, and more than lived up to that recommendation.
The time travel facilities at Oxford University have been overrun by Lady Schrapnell's efforts to rebuild Coventry Cathedral, largely because one of her ancestors had a life-changing experience there. But then one of the researchers brings something back with her that she shouldn't have been able to - and a wild chase ensues to set things right again. Most of the book takes place in the Victorian era (when the ancestor in question had the life-changing experience).
The poor POV character is overworked and under-prepared when he gets tapped to deal with 1888; the beauty of that is the reader learns the ins and outs of Victorian society along with him. It's hilarious and touching in turns, and very much worth not spoiling the ending. If you like wacky time-travel hijinks or historical fiction, give this a try.
28 December 2009
book the first: Jingo
My first break book was Jingo, by Terry Pratchett. Chronologically, it's toward the middle of both the series as a whole and the Watch-centric arc; this being Pratchett, though, you don't have to know every bit of background information from the previous books to enjoy it.
Jingo is a beautifully done war satire; a mysterious island pops out of the ocean between Ankh-Morpork and Klatch, the scramble to claim it exacerbates already tense diplomatic relationships, and hijinks ensue. Said hijinks occasionally take the shape of JFK's assassination, occasionally look more like Lawrence of Arabia, and mostly look like nothing but themselves.
This is also one of the few Discworld books that actually takes on race relations as Earthlings know them. Usually, Earth-style race relations get transposed into species issues; on the matter of Ankh-Morpork vs. Klatch, though, human skin color definitely plays a role, and no one is entirely right. It's messy and it's complicated, and it's very much a picture of the real world in that sense.
This was a reread for me; I first read it in high school, and loved every minute. Up to the end, where I sort of stared at the pages in shock - and still loved it, don't get me wrong, but Pratchett knows how to rip your heart out when it counts.
Jingo is a beautifully done war satire; a mysterious island pops out of the ocean between Ankh-Morpork and Klatch, the scramble to claim it exacerbates already tense diplomatic relationships, and hijinks ensue. Said hijinks occasionally take the shape of JFK's assassination, occasionally look more like Lawrence of Arabia, and mostly look like nothing but themselves.
This is also one of the few Discworld books that actually takes on race relations as Earthlings know them. Usually, Earth-style race relations get transposed into species issues; on the matter of Ankh-Morpork vs. Klatch, though, human skin color definitely plays a role, and no one is entirely right. It's messy and it's complicated, and it's very much a picture of the real world in that sense.
This was a reread for me; I first read it in high school, and loved every minute. Up to the end, where I sort of stared at the pages in shock - and still loved it, don't get me wrong, but Pratchett knows how to rip your heart out when it counts.
27 December 2009
A good bookshop is just a genteel black hole that knows how to read.
Hello and welcome to my venture!
My thinking here is to get myself writing on a bit more of a frequent basis, and to get some more recent practice at nonfiction than I've had the chance for lately.
I read a lot, when left to my own devices; taking a book to work to read on breaks seems like the best way to get it done. At present, I don't have a whole lot of time for that, but I've still made some good progress so far.
I'm also trying to expand my reading material into things I haven't read before, rather than going in circles with the same books. (Granted, sometimes I'll be craving a reread, and that'll win out.)
I'll start out backfilling what I've read up to this point. Once I've caught up, I might do 'today's installment' updates, if I feel I've read enough to merit one.
My thinking here is to get myself writing on a bit more of a frequent basis, and to get some more recent practice at nonfiction than I've had the chance for lately.
I read a lot, when left to my own devices; taking a book to work to read on breaks seems like the best way to get it done. At present, I don't have a whole lot of time for that, but I've still made some good progress so far.
I'm also trying to expand my reading material into things I haven't read before, rather than going in circles with the same books. (Granted, sometimes I'll be craving a reread, and that'll win out.)
I'll start out backfilling what I've read up to this point. Once I've caught up, I might do 'today's installment' updates, if I feel I've read enough to merit one.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)