Jenn's Bookshelf

I've Moved!

2009-09-09T14:12:00.003-04:00

I've made all the final changes to the new site and will no longer be posting on this one. Please update your subscriptions with my new site: www.jennsbookshelves.com

Review: Bran Hambric: The Farfield Curse by Kaleb Nation

2009-08-30T09:41:00.001-04:00

At the age of six years old, Bran Hambric was found inside a sealed bank fault. He had no memory of how he had come to be in the vault. As a matter of fact, he couldn't remember anything. The only clue that lead to his identity was a torn piece of paper found with him, which stated: "Bran Hambric, born June 17." Hambric was found by Sewey Wilomas, an employee of the bank.

Eight years later, Hambric is living with the Wilomas family. The Finder's Keepers Law required that, since Sewey Wilomas found Bran, he is theirs "forever or until the End of Time, whichever comes later." Bran lives in the attic of the Wilomas home. He and Rosie (Mabel Wilomas' distant cousin) are essentially the Wilomas' servants.

The Wilomas' live in the City of Dunce, a town where magic and magical creatures have been outlawed. The slight mention of magic or mages (those that practice magic) can result in imprisonment.

One night Bran and Sewey are attacked by a creature who refers to himself as Shambles. During his attempt to take Bran, he mentions the name Emry Hambric, Bran's mother. This is the first Bran has heard anything about his past.

For the first time, Bran begins to question his origin. It doesn't take him long to discover he is not a normal boy. His mother, Emry Hambric, was a mage who risked her life to save Bran's. Emry helped create the Farfield Curse, a curse known to be powerful but hasn't been spoken of for the past eight years. The mages who helped create the Curse are now after Bran, for he is the only one that can awaken the horrible power that can unleash this curse. Bran must stop at nothing to prevent this Curse from occurring.

Bran Hambric: The Farfield Curse was a very thrilling tale. The suspense builds and builds and comes to a powerful climax near the end. I literally read this is one night, nothing was able to pull my attention away. While technically considered a YA novel it is one that can be enjoyed by adults as well. Now, I would be remiss not to mention the similarities to the Harry Potter books. They do exist, but Kaleb is able to hold is own on this one.

The most impressive thing about this book is the author, Kaleb Nation. Kaleb was only fourteen years old when he started writing Bran Hambric, and it took most of his teenage years to complete it. This is a truly impressive feat. The dedication and focus Nation gave to his writing is clearly evident in this book.

Winner of Babydoll!

2009-08-28T19:07:00.001-04:00

The winner has been contacted. Thanks to all who entered! Check back next week for some exciting new giveaways!

Moving Time!

2009-08-27T18:11:00.002-04:00

My blog redesign and move to self-hosting took less time than I expected! The new site, Jenn's Bookshelves is live and ready for visitors!

And to celebrate my redesign and move to self-hosting, I'll be hosting some great giveaways (Hint, Hint: Catching Fire!).

Be sure to check it out and let me know what you think. Please update your subscriptions as well for I will stop posting here by next week. Thanks to all your support!

Change Is In The Air!

2009-08-26T08:48:00.002-04:00

Within the past few months, I've discovered a few blogs that use the same template as mine (sob). It's a template I've grown to love and have spent countless hours customizing. I've branded Jenn's Bookshelf around this template. It's to be expected, I suppose, given it is a free (and fabulous) template!

But, the time has come for me to change it and personalize it a bit more, create something that is truly mine. So, in the next few weeks, Jenn's Bookshelf will have a completely new look. At the same time, I will switch to self-hosting. It make sense to make all these big changes at one time.

Thank you to all of those that have complimented the look of Jenn's Bookshelf! I hope you all will be just as happy, if not more, when the new look is unveiled.

Thank you for being a dedicated follower, and for all of your support!

R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril…IV!!!

2009-08-25T20:53:00.006-04:00

I was so excited to see Carl from Stainless Steel Droppings had posted about his famous RIP (R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril) Challenge, September 1-October 31! I've wanted to participate for some time, but this is the first I've been able to. I always try to read a lot of great horror and thriller during the Halloween season, and this challenge gives me another excuse!

RIP challenges you to pick books from the following categories:

Mystery.
Suspense.
Thriller.
Dark Fantasy.
Gothic.
Horror.
Supernatural.

There are also certain levels (perils) to this challenge. I will be participating in:

Peril the First states that I must read four books of any length, from any subgenre of scary stories.

Now, since my favorite genre is horror, I have a huge bookshelf that is literally packed (I'm talking at least 200 books) full of horror fiction. So, I have a great pool of books to choose from.

Following is my tentative list. I will be adding to this list, I'm certain, depending on the mood I'm in!

Any suggestions for other books I should add to my pool?

National Book Festival is a Month Away! Sign Up for the DC Tweetup!

2009-08-25T16:17:00.004-04:00

The National Book Festival is being held September 26, 2009 at the National Mall in Washington, D.C. There is an amazing line-up of authors scheduled to appear, including some of my favorites:

Shannon Hale
Mo Willems
David Baldacci
Lee Child
James Patterson
George Pelecanos
Judy Blume
Patrick Carman
Rick Riordan
John Grisham
John Irving
Katherine Neville
Jodi Picoult
Nicholas Sparks
Jeannette Walls

(for a full list, visit the Library of Congress Web site).

Several local bloggers are working together to plan a DC TweetUp, which is basically a get together for anyone that will be in town to attend the National Book Festival. If you will be in DC that weekend, and are interested in joining up with us, please sign up for the DC Tweetup group. We're also planning a tour of the Library of Congress Building, so sign up for the group to receive updates as they become available!

Teaser Tuesday, August 25

2009-08-25T08:49:00.006-04:00

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along!

Just do the following:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “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!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My teaser this week comes from No Mercy by John Gilstrap:

"He'd seen a lot of people die in his time, and he always admired the ones who accepted their fate with guts. Good guy or bad, heaven reserved places for those who showed currage to the end. "

What's your teaser this week?

Fall is in the Air! Time to Reorganize!

2009-08-24T15:37:00.012-04:00

I'm really not that big a fan of summer. I detest hot weather. There are perks, however. Less traffic due to no school. I have more free time in the evenings since my oldest doesn't have homework. More time for reading makes me a happy camper!

Fall is definitely in the air, however. A welcome change to the sweltering heat! I've noticed that the mornings are cooler. The sun is rising later. I can almost feel Fall trying to scoot in. I love fall. It's probably my favorite season. I love the changing colors of the foliage. In the area in which I live, it's like driving through a watercolor painting. The colors are so vivid and bright. And I absolutely love back to school shopping! I loved it as a kid, and I love it still as an adult. We start early, in July, so we don' t have to deal with the horrible crowds and digging through the leftover supplies. And, oh how I wish it would be acceptable for me to carry a trapper keeper to work! Or use glittery pencils with multi-colored erasers!

A big thing we do at our house this time of year is reorganize! With the fall, not only does it bring school but it also begins my busy travel time of the year. So, buy organizing and decluttering, it helps make our days run smoother and our lives less hectic.

I was ecstatic when I was contacted by CSN Office Furniture inviting me to review one of their products. Several other bloggers were contacted and decided to review bookshelves. Now, I could definitely use another bookshelf, but keeping in line with this whole theme of organizing, I decided to review an item that would keep our family more organized. Because not only does CSN home office furniture sell bookshelves and other office equipment, it also sells some great organizational pieces! So I began to think of an area in our house that could stand a bit of organizing. I instantly thought of my son's room, specifically his video game console/collection.

The item I will be reviewing is the Four-Tier Wire Gaming Tower. I just love all the storage space it provides, and even more importantly, the hooks for the controllers! Currently, my son just throws them in a drawer and the cords get all twisted and bent. With this new system, I'm hoping my son will be able to keep this area of his room a little neater.

So, check back in a few weeks for my review. And, if my son is willing, I will post a before and after picture of his video game area!

I've Joined the Middle Grade Book Challenge!

2009-08-24T12:13:00.006-04:00

I can't believe it myself, but I've signed up for yet another challenge! The Middle Grade Book Challenge is sponsored by Bambi Reads. Here are the details:

1. Anyone can join.

2. Read 12 middle grade novels (Challenge 1) or read 25 MG books (Challenge 2). You can read comics too, or listen to audio books. These can be in any language. You don't have to make a reading list now; you may select them as you go and you're free to make changes to your list.

3. The challenge begins September 1st, 2009 through August 31st, 2010.

4. You can join anytime between now and August 31st, 2010.

Sounds like a great challenge, doesn't it!? I read a good deal of Middle-Grade books with my ten- year-old son, so this is the perfect challenge for us to do together!

I'm aiming for Challenge 2 (25 MG books). Here are the books we'll start off with:

39 Clues series (currently 5 books in this series)
Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
Savvy by Ingrid Law
When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead
Bran Hambric: The Farfield Curse by Kaleb Nation
Skeleton Creek by Patrick Carman
Ghost in the Machine (Skeleton Creek, Book Two) by Patrick Carman

I need your input! What middle grade books should we add to our list?

It's Monday, What Are You Reading This Week?

2009-08-24T08:58:00.002-04:00

It's Monday! What Are You Reading This Week? This is a weekly event to list the books completed last week, the books currently being reading, and the books to be finish this week. It was created by J.Kaye's Book Blog, so stop by and join in!

Books Completed Last Week

Babydoll by Allyson Roy
Fade to Blue by Sean Beaudoin
Nothing but Ghosts by Beth Kephart

Currently Reading:

No Mercy by John Gilstrap
The Black Echo by Michael Connelly (audiobook)

Books to Complete This Week:

I have a lot of great books to read in the next few weeks. I'm very excited about many of them (I wonder which ones they are!?)

Alex Cross's TRIAL by James Patterson
Homer's Odyssey by Gwen Cooper
Evil at Heart by Chelsea Cain
Jack Wakes Up by Seth Harwood
Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
Fragment by Warren Fahy

What are you reading this week?

The Winner of The Disobedient Girl is...

2009-08-24T08:52:00.003-04:00

I've emailed Kristen to obtain her mailing address. Thank you to all that entered. Remember, you still have a few days to enter to win Babydoll by Allyson Roy!

Book Blogger Appreciation Week! Can You Feel the Excitement?

2009-08-20T08:36:00.003-04:00

I think I've drilled this into your heads already, but Book Blogger Appreciation Week is coming up soon: September 14-18, 2009. Nominees for the various categories have been nominated and I love the excitement I see on twitter when people tweet what category they have been nominated for. The enthusiasm is overwhelming!

Well, Jenn's Bookshelf has been nominated for Best Reviews! I woke up to find the email waiting for me. I'm suprised, humbled, and honored! Thank you to whomever nominated me!

I also have to thank the awards committee that has been spending a tremendous amount of time sending out these notificiations. It's a lot of hard work, and we all appreciate your dedication to spreading the excitement about book bloggers!

So, I have until midnight tomorrow (Friday, August 21st) to come up with 5 posts that most reflect my blog and this category. It's going to be a lot of fun to go back and reflect over the posts I've done over the past year, and to see how much Jenn's Bookshelf has grown and matured.

Be sure to keep following the BBAW blog and be sure to vote for your favorite blogs! Voting starts Monday, September 7 and ends on September 12 at 11:59 PM EST.

Review, Blog Tour & Giveaway: Babydoll by Allyson Roy

2009-08-19T08:35:00.004-04:00

Saylor Oz is a Brooklyn-based sex therapist. She spends her days curing couples of their sexual woes. But when the brother of her long-time friend gets arrested and convicted of serial murders, Saylor feels obligated to put on a detective hat and hunts for the true killer.

The murder victims were all models found around New York City. Each victim has a lock of hair missing. Saylor, a connoisseur of films of a sexual nature, realizes that she's seen this somewhere before: an old movie entitled Bad, Bad, Babydoll. Saylor immediately begins investigating the cast of this movie and discovers some startling similarities to the crimes. She vows to stop at nothing, even putting herself in harms way, to help find the true killer.

Readers of Jenn's Bookshelf know that I can't stand when one author's writing is compared to another. However, in the case of Babydoll, I can't help but compare it to Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum novels. Saylor has the same no-holds-barred attitude as Stephanie Plum. I It's not Pulitzer Prize-winning fiction, but an excellent read nonetheless. Several times I found myself laughing at loud. The emotions the reader experiences ranges from sorrow and hatred to tears-rolling-down-your face humor. The characters are stellar. Each has their own faults, but you can't help but love them. And if that's not enough, the storyline is very suspenseful. Just when you think you've solved the case, Roy throws in something from left field and forces you to reconsider.

While Babydoll is technically the second in a series of books, you lose nothing by not reading the first of the series, Aphrodisiac . Obviously, since the main character is a sex therapist, there is a good deal of sex in this book. It's not overly graphic or raunchy in any way and completely appropriate for this book.

I highly recommend this one! A steamy thriller for your steamy summer evenings!

About the author:

Allyson Roy translates into Alice & Roy, husband and wife collaborating authors. Roy, a graduate of the University Of The Arts in Philadelphia, has a background in theater, art and standup comedy. Alice, dancer/choreographer/teacher, double majored in dance and philosophy at the State University of New York. They spent many gypsy years living and working in the different neighborhoods of New York City and Philadelphia. Aside from being marriage and writing partners, they are also best friends, which is reflected in the heartfelt, go-the-distance friendship of their two main characters.

Thanks to TLC Book Tours for allowing me to take part in this tour. And thanks to the publisher, Penguin, for providing a copy of this book for review.

Check out the other blogs participating in this tour:

Tuesday, August 18th: The Eclectic Book Lover
Wednesday, August 19th: Jenn’s Bookshelf
Tuesday, August 25th: Jen’s Book Thoughts
Wednesday, August 26th: Cheryl’s Book Nook
Thursday, August 27th: Reading With Monie
Monday, August 31st: Bookluver-Carol’s Reviews
Wednesday, September 2nd: Chick With Books
Thursday, September 3rd: Stephanie’s Confessions of a Book-a-holic
Tuesday, September 8th: GalleySmith
Wednesday, September 9th: Bookgasm
Thursday, September 10th: I’m Booking It

Now to the giveway! To enter, comment on this post. To earn extra entries, blog and/or tweet about it. Please include a direct link to your tweet or blog post in your comment. All comments must contain an email address. Comments received without email address will be automatically removed. Open to US and Canadian residents only. Winner will be announced on this blog on Friday, August 28th.

Teaser Tuesday, August 18

2009-08-18T09:05:00.004-04:00

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along!

Just do the following:

Grab your current read

Open to a random page

Share two (2) “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!)

Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My teaser this week comes from Babydoll by Allyson Roy:

"We were out looking for an old coffee can with some dead person's hair inside it when we ran into this guy smoking a joint who invited us into the wrong house, whereupon I clogged up his toilet, and you decided to lift three semi-automatics, twenty-one thousand in cash, and four bags of powder. And, let's not forget I'm the sister of a convicted serial killer."

Check back tomorrow for my review of Babydoll!

What's your teaser this week?

It's Monday, What Are You Reading This Week?

2009-08-17T21:00:00.000-04:00

It's Monday! What Are You Reading This Week? This is a weekly event to list the books completed last week, the books currently being reading, and the books to be finish this week. It was created by J.Kaye's Book Blog, so stop by and join in!

Books Completed Last Week

The Magicians by Lev Grossman
The Scarecrow by Michael Connelly
A Disobedient Girl by Ru Freeman

Currently Reading

Babydoll by Allyson Roy
The Black Echo by Michael Connelly (audiobook)
Fade to Blue by Sean Beaudoin

Books to Complete This Week

Nathan's Run and No Mercy by John Gilstrap
Tricks by Ellen Hopkins
Alex Cross's TRIAL by James Patterson

What are you reading this week?

Review, Blog Tour, and Giveaway: A Disobedient Girl by Ru Freeman

2009-08-16T21:08:00.011-04:00

Set in Sri Lanka, A Disobedient Girl tells the story of two women, Latha and Biso. Latha is raised in the priviledged household of the Vithanages. As a young child, her role is that of a friend to their only child, a daughter named Thara. As young girls, their status appears to be the same, but as Latha grows older she discovers that her destiny is that of a servant. She sees and experiences the difference in class and must come to deal with this painful realization. Biso is a mother of three, desperately attempting to get her and her three children away from her alcoholic and abusive husband. The reader follows Biso on her several day long journey to her mother's family in the north.

Freeman's writing is vivid and honest. The characters come alive on the pages of this debut novel. Freeman introduces us to two extremely strong women, attempting to survive in a world that attempts to oppress them. I have to strongly disagree with other reviews that indicated these two characters aren't deserving of sympathy, that they deserved the lives they were forced to live. They couldn't exactly rise up and overcome their oppressors. The lives they were leading were once forced upon them. They were born into this horrid system of ranking. The lengths they went to and the sacrifices they were forced to make earned them my undying respect.

In reading A Disobedient Girl I viewed a side of Sri Lankan culture that I hadn't ever before. Freeman dealt with difficult issues that many are afraid to delve into. The journey the two women take is a painful search for independence and respect in a culture that restricts privileges due to class. A Disobedient Girl is a painful and devastating glimpse at this culture. I highly recommend this novel to any reader interested in learning about different cultures. It will open your eyes to these differences in cultures, and the plights that women are forced to deal with based purely on their sex. It also brings up a lot of points of discussion and would be the perfect book club joice as well. Reading this made me appreciate even more the rights I am afforded as a citizen of a democratic nation. This novel was set in the 1980s and 1990s and it is terrifying that situations like this existed in my lifetime. So rush to your local bookstore and pick up a copy; you won't regret it.

Thank you to TLC Book Tours for giving me the opportunity to review this book, and to the publisher for providing me a review copy.

You can enter to win a copy of A Disobedient Girl! Thanks to the publisher, I have an extra copy to give away. To enter, comment on this post. For extra entries, tweet and/or blog about it. Your comment must contain your email address. Entries without this contact information will be authomatically deleted. Contest open to U.S. and Canada only. The winner will be announced on Monday, August 24. GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED!

Following are additional stops on this tour.

Tuesday, August 18th: Worducopia
Thursday, August 20th: My Friend Amy
Monday, August 24th: Maw Books
Tuesday, August 25th: Lost in Books
Thursday, August 27th: Bibliophile by the Sea
Tuesday, September 1st: A Sea of Books
Tuesday, September 8th: Wordlily
Monday, September 14th: Shhh I’m Reading
Wednesday, September 16th: Savvy Verse and Wit
Thursday, September 17th: Ticket to Anywhere
Tuesday, September 22nd: Musings of a Bookish Kitty
Thursday, September 24th: Fizzy Thoughts
Monday, September 28th: Book Addiction
Wednesday, September 30th: Caribousmom

Book Blogger Appreciation Week Meme!

2009-08-12T09:48:00.004-04:00

Book Blogger Appreciation Week (BBAW) is just a little over a month away! Have you nominated your favorite blogs yet? The deadline is August 15th, so nominate now!

I created my blog in March of 2008, and unfortunately I didn't learn about BBAW until it was over. This year, a little meme was created to spread the excitement about BBAW.

1) What has been one of the highlights of blogging for you?

Without a doubt, I'd say the community. I've met a number of amazing people since creating my blog. This includes other bloggers, but also authors and publicists as well. It was wonderful to know that there were other people out there who appreciated reading as much as I do.

2) What blogger has helped you out with your blog by answering questions, linking to you, or inspiring you?

Where do I begin? Well, the first blogger I followed was Becky from No More Grumpy Bookseller. She and I both reviewed for Bookbitch and she was definitely an inspiration to me. She gives the best book recommendations and has introduced me to a bunch of "new to me" authors. My book collection has grown tremendously since I started following her blog.

In addition to Becky, there are dozens upon dozens of other bloggers who have helped me improve my blog and my blogging experience. Here are just a few:

Kathy from Bermudaonion's Weblog-Kathy was one of the first to comment on my blog. She's the commenting queen!

Beth from Beth Fish Reads-We both swear we are long-lost twins, separated by time and space.

Julie from Booking Mama-Her blog has introduced me to a wealth of great books for my boys.

Trish from Hey Lady! Whatcha Readin'?-Trish offers the best suggestions when it comes to improving and enhancing a blog. In addition, she was my roomie at BEA, and I truly enjoyed the time we spent together and the conversations we had.

Amy from My Friend Amy-Another blogger that offers great advice when it comes to books and blogging. She alleviated my nervousness about attending BEA for the first time always has the best responses/solutions when drama pops up in the blogging world. She and I don't always have the same opinion, but hers is one I definitely value.

Swapna from S. Krishna's Books-Swapna is one fast reader! She inspires me to read more!

Dawn from She is Too Fond of Books-Dawn is an amazing monther and woman. I love when she features receipes on her blog. I always try them out. They aren't always a hit, but the experience is unforgettable. Dawn also inspired me to join the Game On Challenge, an experience that forever changed me and my eating lifestyle.

Stephanie from Stephanie's Written Word-Stephanie is a brave and strong woman, an inspiration to us all!

Michelle, aka Galleysmith- Michelle gave me the great idea to create my Virginia is for Lovers feature. She also supported my Supernatural addiction by lending me two seasons-worth of DVDs :). Michelle is a true bibliophile--her book shopping extravaganzas relieve the guilt I have after buying a few books.

Ok, I know there are a gazillion other bloggers I'd like to thank, but for fear of this post turning into one of those never ending award acceptance speeches, I'll stop for now.

3) What one question do you have about BBAW that someone who participated last year could answer?

Short, easy answer: How on earth do you only select one blog to nominate from each category!?

Book Spotlight: The Calling by David Mack

2009-08-11T08:47:00.005-04:00

HEAR THE CALLING.

No one would guess by looking at Tom Nash that he's extraordinary, and that's just fine with him. A tall, broad-shouldered jack-of-all-trades from Sawyer, Pennsylvania, Tom has a knack for fixing things. He also hides a secret talent: he hears people's prayers. Stranger still, he answers them. Maybe it's because he's a handyman, but Tom feels compelled to fix people's problems. Which is all well and good -- until the soul-shattering plea of a terrified girl sends him on the darkest journey of his life....

SEEK THE TRUTH.

Heeding the call and leaving his home for New York City, Tom discovers a secret world beyond the range of mortal perception -- a world of angels and demons and those who serve them. With the guidance of a knowing stranger named Erin, Tom learns that he himself is one of The Called, born with a divine purpose and a daunting task: to help the powers of Heaven in the war against the agents of Hell, an army of fallen angels known as the Scorned. Thrust into an epic battle of the sacred and the profane, Tom Nash must find the girl who prayed for his help -- because her fate will determine whether humanity deserves to be saved, or damned for all eternity....

Want more? Click here for an excerpt from Chapter One, and here for an excerpt from Chapters Two and Three.

Stay tuned for my review of The Calling by David Mack.

Tuesday Teaser, August 11th

2009-08-11T08:24:00.006-04:00

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along!

Just do the following:

Grab your current read

Open to a random page

Share two (2) “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!)

Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My teaser this week comes from The Magicians by Lev Grossman

"It was almost like the Fillroy books--especially the first one, The World in the Walls--were about reading itself. When the oldest Chatwin, melancholy Martin, opens the cabinet of the grandfather clock that stands in a dark, narrow back halloway in his uncles house and slips through into Fillroy (Quentin always pictured him awkwardly pushing aside the pendulum, like the uvula of a monstrous throat), it's like he's opening the covers of a book, but a book that did what books always promised to do and never actually quite did: get you out, really out, of where you were and into something better." (page 7)

What's your teaser this week?

It's Monday! What Are You Reading This Week?

2009-08-10T07:30:00.000-04:00

It's Monday! What Are You Reading This Week? This is a weekly event to list the books completed last week, the books currently being reading, and the books to be finish this week. It was created by J.Kaye's Book Blog, so stop by and join in!

Books Completed Last Week

The Lincoln Lawyer (audiobook) by Michael Connelly
Urban Gothic by Brian Keene
Hugh and Bess by Susan Higginbotham

Currently Reading

The Magicians by Lev Grossman
The Scarecrow by Michael Connelly

Books to Complete This Week

Hamlet by John Marsden
The Last Ember by Daniel Levin
Jantsen's Gift: A True Story of Grief, Rescue, and Grace by Pam Cope
Fade to Blue
Fade to Blue by Sean Beaudoin
Damas, Dramas, and Ana Ruiz by Belinda Acosta

What are you reading this week?

Review: Urban Gothic by Brian Keene

2009-08-09T18:20:00.004-04:00

A car load of white teens gets stranded in the middle of the Philadelphia ghetto after attending a concert. A few exit the car in an attempt to fix it, and they are approached by some local teens. They are fearful for their lives, and after shouting some racial expletives, they all take off running down the street. They search the neighborhood for some safe place to retreat while they wait for someone to rescue them.

They break into an old, abandoned run-down house at the end of the street. But it's not abandoned. Shortly after entering the house, they are attacked by a "mutant" man. One of the youths is killed instantly and the remaining teens fight for their lives. They quickly learn that the "man" that attacked them wasn't the only occupant of this dark, deserted home. The house is full of inhuman "creatures"at various stages of deformity.

Meanwhile, the neighborhood teens have noticed where the "outsiders" have run to. They know the reputation of this house: no one who enters has ever come out alive. They go to the house of a veteran of the neighborhood and seek his assistance. They call the police and await their response. While they wait, Perry, the veteran resident, reminisces about the neighborhood, and recalls a time when the neighbors knew and talked to one another, a time when the police responded when there was an issue. He discusses the sad state the neighborhood is in now, and then decides to take a stand. The group decides to break into the home and rescue the trapped teens.

Keene does another stellar job with this newest book. He consistently succeeds at horrifying his readers. The perseverance that each of the trapped teens exhibits is commendable. The initial stereotypes they each have eventually fades away as they attempt to survive this house of extreme horror. I recommend this to any fan of horror fiction, but due to the level of gore, I sincerely warn those with a weak stomach to avoid it!

Thank you to Dorchester Publishing for providing a copy of Urban Gothic for review.

Review and Blog Tour: Hugh and Bess by Susan Higginbotham

2009-08-06T08:24:00.004-04:00

Eleven-year-old Bess de Montacute is infuriated when she discovers that she is being forced to marry thirty-two-year-old Hugh le Despenser. Hugh comes from a family of traitors, and isn't very happy about the arrangement either. For the past several years, he has been having a love affair with a woman he would never be permitted to wed.

After being imprisoned after his father's execution, Hugh realizes he must accept this gift he has been presented. The two are forced to come together and perservere despite the challenges placed before them. Young Bess is allowed a reprieve of one year after she weds before she must share a bed with her husband. An appalling thought in the current time, but a very common practice in the 14th century.

Even though they eventually grow to love one another, their love is continually tested. A war separates them and threatens to systematically destroy those they love. And just when it appears as though it can't get any worse, they are faced to deal with an unforgiving and indiscriminate plague-pestilence. Just how much can their love withstand?

Hugh and Bess is truly a coming of age novel. We watch each of the main characters grow and mature as their love blossoms and they become remarkable people. Higginbotham does an outstanding job of growing her characters. She makes this historical fiction/romance an interesting one. At no point was I overwhelmed or bored with the historical facts that were relayed. Higginbotham overcomes this by the incredible dialogue she creates between the characters. Most of the history is relayed by the characters themselves, and not some dull and dry narrator. I'm a huge fan of historical fiction, but not typically historical romance. But I can't say enough about this powerful love story between two people forced together by marriage. I was so enamored by this love story that I read it twice! Those that know me understand that I can count on one hand the books I have had a desire to read more than once! Higginbotham is an author I will continue to follow.

Thank you to Sourcebooks for providing a copy of Hugh and Bess for review!

Guest Post: Ellen Newmark, Author of The Book of Unholy Mischief

2009-08-04T05:00:00.001-04:00

A not so funny thing happened on the way to this blog. My husband fell seriously ill.

I had planned to write about passion, about how it adds richness and meaning and beauty to life, but faced with losing my partner of almost thirty years I couldn’t summon up enough passion to write about passion. I felt bereft. I looked it up to be sure that was the correct word.

Bereft: deprived of something; lacking something needed or expected.

Yes, bereft is correct.

But I made a commitment to this blog tour so I opened my computer and started to string sentences together. Of course, being bereft, I wrote about watching my smart, sweet, beautifully educated husband asking, “What’s happening to me?” over and over. He could not answer questions like, “What year is this? How many children do you have? How old are you?” His body was there, but he was gone.

Bereft.

Yet, as I wrote I began to feel slightly less bereft. My passion is writing and doing it made me feel less hollow and less frightened. That’s when I decided to go back to my original idea and write about passion. Passion doesn’t only enrich the good times; passion can get us through the bad ones.

Pablo Neruda described a writer’s passion more beautifully than I ever could. He said:

“… I love words so much: the unexpected ones, the ones I wait for greedily are stalked until, suddenly, they drop. Vowels I love, they glitter like colored stones, they leap like silver fish. They are foam, thread, metal, dew. I run after certain words… I catch them in mid flight as they buzz past. I trap them, clean them, peel them. I set myself in front of a dish; they have a crystalline texture to me; vibrant, ivory, vegetable, oily, like fruit, like algae, like agate, like olive. And then I stir them, I shake them, I drink them, I gulp them down, I garnish them…like stalactites, like slivers of polished wood, like coal, pickings from a shipwreck, gifts from the waves. Everything exists in the word.”

That’s the passion that kept me writing through thirty years of rejection.
In 2008, Simon & Schuster published my novel, The Book of Unholy Mischief, and I was elated. But the giddy moment passed, and I understood that fleeting success did not measure up to the profound pleasure of creating something original.

Thirty years of writing yielded new and various rewards on a daily basis, one of which has been sharing my passion with my grandchildren. My grandkids know that a day out with Grandma means going to the bookstore, and they love it. We each choose a new book, and then we sit down to lunch and pour over our treasure. It gave me a deep, tickling satisfaction to hear that when my daughter found the Italian edition of my book in Venice, her five-year old ran through the store yelling, “We found Grandma’s book!” Hearing that was a wonderful moment born of passion.

My husband has had his passions too. He climbed mountains, flew glider planes, kayaked, and practiced medicine. After we married we shared a passion for travel and visited dozens of countries on six continents. We lived abroad and our shared love of exploration gave our lives scope and dimension. Now that his future is uncertain our history of shared passion is a comfort. Passion is our consolation for mortality.

Thank you, all who read this, for helping me indulge my passion and soften a hard moment. May you all find a passion, and indulge the hell out of it.

Thank you, Ellen, for stopping by Jenn's Bookshelf. You and your husband are in my thoughts during this incredibly difficult time.

Tuesday Teaser, August 4th

2009-08-04T04:30:00.000-04:00

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along!

Just do the following:

Grab your current read

Open to a random page

Share two (2) “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!)

Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My teaser this week comes from Hugh and Bess by Susan Higginbotham:

The couple had married as children and had disliked each other from the start. Mortimer and Isabella had executed their fathers a week apart, and though this circumstance might have brought some couples closer together, it had not improved their marital relations."

Interesting...never knew executing one's parent would add spice to the bedroom!

What is your teaser for the week?