It's Monday! What are you reading? June 14, 2010

It's Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. Here we get to discuss the books we've finished over the last week and what we'll be working on this week.

Over the last 2 weeks, I've found myself in a literary funk. I can't seem to get into anything...or at least I couldn't, until I picked up Sea by Heidi Kling. Phew! So, I'm whipping through Sea while still reading Frankenstein by Mary Shelley (for school) and For the Win by Cory Doctorow. I'm also still working on Beautiful Creatures by Garcia and Stohl and will be picking up I Now Pronounce You Someone Else by Erin McCahan once I've finished Sea. The YA books tend to perk me up a little more at the moment :-)

My reviews for Uncertain Magic by Laura Kinsale and White Cat by Holly Black have posted recently, too. That means my reviews are up to date but my reading is very far behind. Gotta make more of an effort to remedy this, I think...

What do you have in store this week?

It's Monday! What are you reading: May

It's Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. Here we get to discuss the books we've finished over the last week and what we'll be working on this week.

Over the last 2 weeks, I finished reading finished reading The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom and White Cat by Holly Black as well as Oedipus Rex. I've also posted my review for Bite Me: A Love Story by Christopher Moore and The Kitchen House (linked above). I should have my review for White Cat posted over the next day or two.

I'm currently reading Othello for school (though I'm better appreciating Shakespeare's writing, this was never one of my favourite plays) and Dead in the Family by Charlaine Harris. Up next will be Uncertain Magic by Laura Kinsale.

What's happening with your week?

Teaser Tuesday - May 4, 2010

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly event hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading.

Here is how it works:
Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2 or 3) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Remember to show the title & author, too, so that others can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!



This week, my teaser comes from The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom:

"Hoh! He calls me his daughter, and all the time he's got me working down in the kitchen house! 'So if I die, do I go in the ground next to Miss Sally, or do you put me in the ground down by the quarters?' " (page 75)

It's Monday! What are you reading? May 3, 2010

It's Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. Here we get to discuss the books we've finished over the last week and what we'll be working on this week.

Last week, I posted my reviews of The 9th Judgment by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro, Linger by Maggie Stiefvater, Ash by Malinda Lo, and Wondrous Strange by Lesley Livingston.

I finished reading Bite Me by Christopher Moore and will have that review up shortly.

I'm still working on Timothy and the Dragon's Gate by Adrienne Kress and The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom. I totally failed starting White Cat by Holly Black, but it's definitely on the list for this week. I'll also be reading Oedipus Rex by Sophocles this week for an online course I'm taking, so how's that for diverse? *L*

What's happening with your week?

It's Monday! What are you reading? April 26, 2010

It's Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. Here we get to discuss the books we've finished over the last week and what we'll be working on this week.

Last week, I finished The 9th Judgment by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro, which releases today, so I'll get my review up quickly for it. I also finished Linger by Maggie Stiefvater...keep an eye out for my review, I'll have an extra little something in there for the Stiefvater fans out there ;-)

I'm still working on Bite Me by Christopher Moore and Timothy and the Dragon's Gate by Adrienne Kress (I started this one a couple of weeks back and set it aside, but I'm getting into it now.) I also started on The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom (the subject matter here, namely slavery, is unsettling to me, to say the least, so I'm switching this up with the lighter reads for balance.) I will be starting on White Cat by Holly Black, for sure, sometime through the week.

I spent most of last week posting at Rated By Kids, so my reviews fell short here...at least I actually have a good excuse this time;-) That should mean a bunch of reviews will be posted here this week (fingers crossed, lol.)

What does your week have in store?

Teaser Tuesday: Apr. 20, 2010

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly event hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading.

Here is how it works:
Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2 or 3) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Remember to show the title & author, too, so that others can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!


My pick this week comes from The 9th Judgment by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro:

"Dowling turned a wild-eyed stare on Conklin. His face went rigid with pain. He clutched his left arm and said, "Something's wrong.

He keeled over and dropped to the floor." (pg. 48 of the ARC)

It's Monday! What are you reading? Apr. 19, 2010

It's Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. Here we get to discuss the books we've finished over the last week and what we'll be working on this week.

Last week, I finished Under Heaven by Guy Gavriel Kay and then had it signed by him!! (I'm still a bit giddy :-) My "tip of the iceberg" review can be found here.) I also started and finished Wondrous Strange by Lesley Livingston.

I couldn't decide what to read next, I have so many books to catch up on, so I read the first 4 pages of about 5 books, hoping something would snag me. I landed on The 9th Judgment by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro. It's my first from The Women's Murder Club Series, so I'm looking forward to it. The other books that I started (all the "first 4 pagers"), will be what I continue with, also, this week: Bite Me by Christopher Moore, Next by James Hynes, Linger by Maggie Stiefvater, and White Cat by Holly Black. Hopefully I'll complete one or two of these.

What have you been up to?

In My Mailbox - Apr. 12, 2010

In My Mailbox, hosted by The Story Siren, is a weekly meme where we get to share what awesome books we've received in the mail over the last week. Here are the great books that arrived in my mailbox last week:

For review:








Purchased:

It's Monday! What are you reading? (for Apr. 12, 2010)

It's Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. Here we get to discuss the books we've finished over the last week and what we'll be working on this week.

After a week and a half struggling with a cold (and a bizarre reaction to meds), I've been absent from blogging much of this time. But I'm back and feeling much better now; sadly my reading has suffered too, so there's not much to report:

Last week, I finished Ash by Malinda Lo and should have my review up by Wednesday. I've been concentrating on Under Heaven by Guy Gavriel Kay, because I couldn't wait any longer and because, all going well, I will be seeing him at the world wide launch in Toronto this Thursday!! So, I'm hoping to finish Under Heaven tonight but honestly wished it would just keep going (forever); I love these characters!

This week I'll be starting Next by James Hynes, The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom. and Wondrous Strange by Lesley Livingston. If I can fit it in, I'll be working on Bite Me by Christopher Moore, whom I'm hoping to see next week for a book signing, too.

What have you been up to?

Teaser Tuesday - Mar. 30, 2010

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly event hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading.

Here is how it works:

Grab your current read

Open to a random page

Share two (2 or 3) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

Remember to show the title & author, too, so that others can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My teaser this week comes from Shadow of the King: Book three of The Pendragon's Banner Trilogy by Helen Hollick:

"He heard a woman screaming, a man laughing; ducked and twisted as both men lunged forward. Head-butting one, his fist pounded into the chin of the other. The first doubled over, winded, his arms going around his stomach, sword falling to the earthen floor." (pg. 347-348)

It's Monday! What are you reading? Mar. 29, 2010

It's Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. Here we get to discuss the books we've finished over the last week and what we'll be working on this week.

Last week I devoured The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting. I posted my review for Jonas: Beautiful Dead, book 1 by Eden Maguire as well as an excerpt & book trailer for Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: Dawn of the Dreadfuls by Steve Hockensmith. (If you haven't watched it yet, go check it out. It's one of the better trailers I've seen, production wise.)

I have prepped 3 of my reviews to post this week: The Wrecker by Clive Cussler and Merlin's Harp by Anne Eliot Crompton are posting today and Love Struck by Chantel Simmons will post on Tuesday. I have 3 more reviews to do this week to get caught up again.

This week I will finish Beauvallet by Georgette Heyer. I'm actually really enjoying the story now, having become accustomed to the lingo the more I read it.

I'm also continuing with Shadow of the King by Helen Hollick and have started on Ash by Malinda Lo and Timothy and the Dragon's Gate by Adrienne Kress. My plan was to have a good portion of Shadow of the King finished by now, but just looking at the book, the word tome comes to mind; it will take longer than I thought. Meanwhile, I patiently impatiently await completing it so I can delve into Under Heaven by Guy Gavriel Kay, who is always nothing short of epic!

What have you accomplished over the last week?

Waiting on Wednesday - Mar. 24, 2010

This weekly event is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine where we get to share which upcoming reads/new releases that we just can't wait to get our hands on.

My WoW pick for this week is: The Girl Who kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson which releases on May 25, 2010:

As The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest opens, Lisbeth Salander—the heart and soul of Larsson's two previous novels—is under close supervision in the intensive care unit of a provincial Swedish city hospital. And she's fighting for her life in more ways than one: when she's well enough, she'll be taken back to Stockholm to stand trial for a triple murder. With the help of her friend, journalist Mikael Blomkvist, she will have to prove her innocence, and identify and denounce the corrupt politicians who have allowed the vulnerable, like herself, to become victims of abuse and violence. And, on her own, she will plot her revenge—against the man who tried to kill her, and the government institutions that very nearly destroyed her life.

I'm also picking The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and The Girl Who Played With Fire, both of which have been patiently waiting on my bookshelf for a few months now :-( I've heard such great things about this series, that I'm anxious to read them all!!

So, what book are you waiting for?

Teaser Tuesday - Mar. 23, 2010

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly event hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading.

Here is how it works:
Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2 or 3) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Remember to show the title & author, too, so that others can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My teaser this week comes from The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting:

"And despite the fact that another body had just been found, Violet was suddenly at peace with the world again. She seemed to abruptly wake from the haze that had claimed her." (pg. 77)

There's lots of talk about this book throughout the book blogging community. I haven't reached this far yet, so I'm not sure of the complete context myself, but what do you think? Have you been sufficiently teased? Let me know :-)

Mailbox Monday - Mar. 22, 2010

Mailbox Monday hosted by Marcia of The Printed Page, is a weekly meme where we get to share what awesome books we've received in the mail over the last week. Here are the great books that arrived in my mailbox last week:


The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting (click here for more information)

and

Bite Me by Christopher Moore (click here for more information)

Both of these have been featured as my Waiting on Wednesday picks, so I'm pretty excited!

What goodies arrived in your mailbox?

It's Monday! What are you reading? Mar. 22, 2010

It's Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. Here we get to discuss the books we've finished over the last week and what we'll be working on this week.

Last week I completed Angel Time by Anne Rice, Neil Flambe and the Marco Polo Murders by Kevin Sylvester, and Beautiful Dead by Eden Maguire. I'm also continuing (still, I know!) to work on Beauvallet by Georgette Heyer. The delay is not from disliking the book but more so the frequency I have to double back on what I've read to try and figure out what it's talking about. I'm seriously out of practice with my Shakespearean-speak for sure!

I'm still behind on my reviews, though I did manage to post my review for Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver. May try to lock myself away to get caught up on these...

I've started reading Shadow of the King by Helen Hollick and The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting. I hope to have these two books completed this week and get started on Under Heaven by Guy Gavriel Kay.

What do you have planned this week?

1st Rate Fridays - Mar. 19, 2010

This is a new weekly meme, hosted by Mel at He Followed Me Home . To quote Mel, it's "a weekly meme to share favorite posts you've come across recently. Although it's impossible to follow every book blogger, this is a great opportunity to highlight exceptional posts you find. Hopefully along the way you'll find some great new-to-you blogs as well. Let's spread the love and support those awesome posts out there! "

Terry at Alexia's Books and Such, has an excellent post about the pros and cons of the nook phenomenon here: To Nook or Not To Nook . She had a borrowed nook, so her article is based on a practical trial.

From an author's stand point, a visit to Guy Gavriel Kay's Bright Weavings offers up his journal as he comes closer to the release of Under Heaven, his latest novel. This is a site I often refer to, because not only does it have information on his books but also his insights into the publishing process today as well as (and more relevant in this format) the role & importance of book bloggers.

Lastly, for a great review of a much talked about sequel, head over to Book Whisperer and see what she has to say about Linger by Maggie Stiefvater. (Plus, background music including Bad Romance by Lady Gaga, which I'm not afraid to say I blast on the radio every chance I get!)

It's Monday! What are you reading? - March 15, 2010

It's Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. Here we get to discuss the books we've finished over the last week and what we'll be working on this week.

Last week I (finally) completed Clive Cussler's The Wrecker. I'm still working on Beauvallet by Georgette Heyer and Anne Rice's Angel Time. I was away for a couple of days and got absolutely no reading done! Now, I'm behind my self-imposed schedule. Plus, still no reviews up :-p At least that part will be rectified this week.

For this week, my plan is to finish Angel Time. I may have to set aside Beauvallet, though I really hate doing that; I just can't seem to get into it. I'll also continue on with Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: Dawn of the Dreadfuls to offer up a little humour in this mixed bag.

I've started Neil Flambe and The Marco Polo Murders by Kevin Sylvester and Jonas: Beautiful Dead, Book 1 by Eden Maguire. I hope to finish one, if not both, of these books this week. My daughter is away visiting friends for March break, so in theory that should increase my reading time, but that doesn't always work, does it?

If, by some freak of nature, I get all of this accomplished on time, I'll be starting on Shadow of the King by Helen Hollick. I'm really looking forward to this one (being a huge fan of all things Arthurian.)

I figure I'm either ambitious or a little crazy, but what the heck...

How does your week look, so far?

Mailbox Monday - March 15, 2010

Mailbox Monday hosted by Marcia of The Printed Page, is a weekly meme where we get to share what awesome books we've received in the mail over the last week. Here are the great books that arrived in my mailbox last week:


When a white servant girl violates the order of plantation society, she unleashes a tragedy that exposes the worst and best in the people she has come to call her family.

Orphaned while onboard ship from Ireland, seven-year-old Lavinia arrives on the steps of a tobacco plantation where she is to live and work with the slaves of the kitchen house. Under the care of Belle, the master's illegitimate daughter, Lavinia becomes deeply bonded to her adopted family, though she is set apart from them by her white skin.

Eventually, Lavinia is accepted into the world of the big house, where the master is absent and the mistress battles opium addiction. Lavinia finds herself perilously straddling two very different worlds. When she is forced to make a choice, loyalties are brought into question, dangerous truths are laid bare, and lives are put at risk.

The Kitchen House is a tragic story of page-turning suspense, exploring the meaning of family, where love and loyalty prevail.


A tiny girl is abandoned on a ship headed for Australia in 1913. She arrives completely alone with nothing but a small suitcase containing a few clothes and a single book—a beautiful volume of fairy tales. She is taken in by the dockmaster and his wife and raised as their own. On her twenty-first birthday, they tell her the truth, and with her sense of self shattered and very little to go on, "Nell" sets out to trace her real identity. Her quest leads her to Blackhurst Manor on the Cornish coast and the secrets of the doomed Mountrachet family. But it is not until her granddaughter, Cassandra, takes up the search after Nell’s death that all the pieces of the puzzle are assembled. A spellbinding tale of mystery and self-discovery, The Forgotten Garden will take hold of your imagination and never let go.

In the beginning, there was Tilly: fabulous and free, outrageous and untamable, vulnerable and terrified. Was it the Sixties that did her wrong, or the drugs, or the men, or was it the middle-class upbringing she couldn't abide? As a young woman, she flees home for the hollow neon underworld of Nevada, looking for pure souls and finding nothing but bad habits. She stays away for decades, working the streets and worse, eventually drinking herself to the brink of death in the middle of the desert. One day, after Tilly has spent nearly thirty years without a family, her niece shows up on the doorstep of her dusty trailer.

Stella has been leading her own life of empty promise in New York City. She makes her living booking Botox appointments and national-media appearances for a famous (and famously neurotic) "inspirational" writer by day; she complains about her job at warehouse parties in remote boroughs by night; she waits for her married lover to make time in his schedule to screw her over, softly; and she takes care of her ailing grandmother in Connecticut. Before Stella's grandmother dies, she tells Stella the truth about Tilly, her runaway daughter, and Stella decides to give up the vast and penetrating loneliness of the city to find this lost woman the family had never mentioned.

To continue reading, click here: simonandschuster.ca

AT THE RIPE OLD AGE OF THIRTY-TWO, FORMER WILD CHILD ISABEL "IZZY" SPELLMAN HAS FINALLY AGREED TO TAKE OVER THE FAMILY BUSINESS. AND THE TRANSITION WON'T BE A SMOOTH ONE.

First among her priorities as head of Spellman Investigations is to dig up some dirt on the competition, slippery ex-cop Rick Harkey -- a task she may enjoy a little too much. Next, faced with a baffling missing-persons case at the home of an aging millionaire, Izzy hires an actor friend, Len, to infiltrate the mansion as an undercover butler -- a role he may enjoy a little much.

Meanwhile, Izzy is being blackmailed by her mother (photographic evidence of Prom Night 1994) to commit to regular blind dates with promising professionals -- an arrangement that doesn't thrill Connor, an Irish bartender on the brink of becoming Ex-boyfriend #12

To read on, click here


Violet Ambrose is grappling with two major issues: Jay Heaton and her morbid secret ability. While the sixteen-year-old is confused by her new feelings for her best friend since childhood, she is more disturbed by her "power" to sense dead bodies—or at least those that have been murdered. Since she was a little girl, she has felt the echoes the dead leave behind in the world . . . and the imprints that attach to their killers.

Violet has never considered her strange talent to be a gift; it mostly just led her to find dead birds her cat left for her. But now that a serial killer is terrorizing her small town, and the echoes of the local girls he's claimed haunt her daily, Violet realizes she might be the only person who can stop him.

Click here for more.

So, what do you think? Great list of books, right? What was in your mailbox?

Teaser Tuesday - Mar. 9, 2010

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly event hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading.

Here is how it works:

Grab your current read

Open to a random page

Share two (2 or 3) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

Remember to show the title & author, too, so that others can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My teaser this week comes from Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: Dawn of the Dreadfuls by Steve Hockensmith:

"Walking out in the middle of a funeral would be, of course, bad form. So attempting to walk out on one's own was beyond the pale." (pg.9)

It's Monday! What are you reading? Mar. 8, 2010

It's Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. Here we get to discuss the books we've finished over the last week and what we'll be working on this week.

Over the last week I've continued with Clive Cussler's The Wrecker (I have about 100 pages left), Beauvallet by Georgette Heyer (this is a tricky one linguistically, lots of naval terms in Shakespearean English :-o ) and Anne Rice's Angel Time (I really started getting into this one over the weekend). Oh well, so much for my attempt to have these 3 reviews up last week, lol.

I'm still working on my review of Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver; I'll make a serious effort on that this week to share with my readers :-)

I started and finished Merlin's Harp by Anne Eliot Crompton. I should be able to review this one quickly 'cause I liked it alot!

This week, I will finish The Wrecker and hopefully Angel Time. I'll continue to plod away through Beauvallet. I'll also be starting Neil Flambe and The Marco Polo Murders by Kevin Sylvester and Jonas: Beautiful Dead, Book 1 by Eden Maguire.

What does your week hold for you?