It's Monday, What Are You Reading?

 

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. It is where we gather to share what we have read this past week and what we plan to read this week.

READ LAST WEEK MONTH

I actually read 6 books in May, which is quite a lot for me. Alright, most were rather short, but I did read a total of 1300 pages, compared to 400 in April, so I'd say that's pretty good. :)

The Thousand Dollar Tan Line by Rob Thomas & Jennifer Graham
I adore the Veronica Mars TV series, and I was so excited about the new movie. This is the first in a book series that continues on from where the movie left off. The transition from screen to paper was smooth and the mystery kept me guessing until the end. In addition I was completely blindsided by a reveal that I did not expect to find in the books. But I'm always up for more Veronica Mars, no matter which medium, and I can't wait for the next book in the series.

Pacific Vortex! by Clive Cussler
This is the first Dirk Pitt book that Cussler wrote, but not the first one that was published. I can see why (not that The Mediterranean Caper is much better). Cussler's plots are usually highly entertaining, if far-reaching, but this story was pretty boring. Also, the female characters are just awful.

Coin Heist by Elisa Ludwig
This is a YA heist story about a gang of teenagers who decide to break into the US Mint. Review coming soon!

Passenger 13 by Scott Mariani
This is a prequel novella to the Ben Hope series. It was fun meeting a younger, less jaded Ben Hope and find out why he left the SAS. The plot is solid, except for maybe the ending, which felt a bit rushed. I'm sure this could have been expanded into a full-length novel.

Kickback by Garry Disher
This is the first in the Wyatt series, an Australian noir series about a bank robber. I enjoyed this story about the meticulous, quiet thief Wyatt, but since the series is fairly old it's unfortunately hard to find the rest of the books.

Break Out by Nina Croft
First in the Blood Hunter series. I was very excited about reading this book – space! thieves! prison break out! What's not to like? Unfortunately the answer is "a lot". I love the general premise of the story but sadly there was a lot less plot and a lot more sex than I was led to believe. I might have enjoyed it more if I'd actually liked the two main characters but as it was, I found them both simply irritating. And I think I've proved to myself once and for all that vampires just aren't my thing. I won't be seeking out the rest in this series.

Goodreads challenge status: Read 17 of 35 books – 3 books ahead of schedule.

CURRENTLY READING

I finally found the courage to pick up Red Seas Under Red Skies by Scott Lynch. It's the second book in the Gentleman Bastard series, and those of you who have followed me for a while will know that I absolutely LOVE the first book, The Lies of Locke Lamora. I've been putting RSURS off for years now, because 1, I wanted to wait until the third book came out so I knew I wouldn't be left hanging, and 2, I think I was afraid that no sequel could ever live up to the awesomeness of Lies. I'm happy to say I was wrong on that last part. I'm about 100 pages in, but I was already sold after the first page. I can't tell you how much I love these books. The storylines, the language, the characters... It's all amazing and I can't believe I waited this long to go back to the world of Locke Lamora. I never want to leave again.

WHAT'S NEXT

Red Seas Under Red Skies is a big book so it will keep me occupied for a while (I don't even want to think about it ending!), but after that I'll probably either want to go straight for the next book in the series or read something completely different. I'm waiting for The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman to come in, so that's an option. Otherwise, we'll see where my mood takes me, as usual.

What are you reading this week?

Top Ten Tuesday: Book Boyfriends

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature / weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week we make a top ten list from a given topic.

This week's TTT is a freebie, so I chose:

My Top Ten Book Boyfriends

1. Dirk Pitt (Dirk Pitt series by Clive Cussler)
Pitt is my oldest crush on this list, and actually the guy who got me into the thriller/adventure genre, so he holds a special place in my heart. I immediately fell for this charming, devilishly handome action hero who saves the world on a regular basis. He may be too good to be true, but that's alright with me. (Note: The character is terrible in the first couple of books. I'd advise you to pick up a later book first if you want to start the series.)

2. Locke Lamora (Gentleman Bastard Sequence by Scott Lynch)
I simply can't resist a good con artist, and Locke is one of the best. His physique isn't the most impressing, so he relies on his quick wit and silver tongue to get him out of tight spots (which he often finds himself in). He's loyal to his friends and likes to have a good time. Locke's one of my all-time favourite characters, and I just love him. (Today I heard rumours that there might be TV series in the works based on the books - if this happens I might be the happiest girl on earth.)

3. Ralph Macnair (A Scottish Ferry Tale & Scotland by Starlight by Nancy Volkers)
Out of all the characters on this list, Ralph is the one I most wish actually was my boyfriend. He's a theatre actor; he's kind, caring, funny, handsome and just an overall good guy. Oh, and he's Scottish. *swoon*

4. Joe Morelli (Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich)
I may have stopped reading the books but I never stopped loving Joe Morelli. While everyone else was Team Ranger, I always thought Morelli was the best guy for Stephanie – and me. ;)

5. W.W. Hale the Fifth (Heist Society series by Ally Carter)
Hale is awesome – clever, sophisticated, protective, handsome, rich and a con artist (did I mention how I love a good con artist?), so who cares if he's waaay to young for me?

6. Ben Hope (Ben Hope series by Scott Mariani)
The only thing I love as much as a good con artist is a good action hero, and Ben Hope is certainly one of them. He's a bit moodier and more solitairy than Dirk Pitt, but then again he is British (half Irish). All Ben really wants to do is live a quiet life at his place in Northern France, but he keeps getting dragged into mysteries and conspiracies that needs solving.

7. Sam Howard (Winter Solstice by Rosamunde Pilcher)
Sam is just a sweetheart, and I adore him. He starts out being a workaholic, but during the course of the book he realises that there is more to life than earning money.

8. Corey Purchase (Judd Bell & Corey Purchase series by Steve Worland)
My list wouldn't be complete without a charming Australian. Corey flies a plane in the Australian outback, but when he accidentally helps American austronaut Judd Bell save the world, he becomes quite the hero. Corey's funny and laid-back, and he can talk to his dog. And the dog replies.

9. Aramis (The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas)
Okay, I might be cheating a bit here, because even though I've read the book, it was a long time ago, and my perception of Aramis is mostly based on films and the recent BBC series The Musketeers. But he's still originally a book character, so I've decided that he counts.

10. Levi (Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell)
Levi is my most recent crush. He's the kind of guy I wish I'd known in high school or college; sweet and funny and very kind. Heck, I wish I knew a Levi at my current age as well.

What TTT topic did you choose this week? And tell me about your book boyfriends!

Cover Reveal: The Book of Bart

I'm excited to reveal the cover for Book of Bart, a young-adult, humorous, satirical paranormal-fantasy by Ryan Hill, which is scheduled for release May 22nd, 2014.

 

About Book of Bart:

Genre: young-adult, humorous, satirical paranormal-fantasy Publisher: Curiosity Quills Press Date of Publication: May 22^nd, 2014 Cover Artist: Conzpiracy Digital Arts Blurb: Only one thing is so powerful, so dangerous that Heaven and Hell must work together to find it: the Shard of Gabriel. With a mysterious Black Cloud of Death hot on the shard’s trail, a desperate Heaven enlists the help of Bart, a demon who knows more about the shard than almost anyone. Six years ago, he had it in his hands. If only he’d used it before his coup to overthrow the devil failed. Now, he’s been sprung from his eternal punishment to help Samantha, an angel in training, recover the shard before the Black Cloud of Death finds it. If Bartholomew wants to succeed, he’ll have to fight the temptation to betray Samantha and the allure of the shard. After an existence full of evil, the only way Bart can get right with Hell is to be good.

Add Book of Bart to your Goodreads 'to-be-read' list.

About Ryan Hill:

Growing up, Ryan Hill used to spend his time reading and writing instead of doing homework. This resulted in an obsession with becoming a writer, but also a gross incompetence in the fields of science and mathematics. A graduate of North Carolina State University, Ryan has been a film critic for over five years. He lives in Raleigh, NC, with his dog/shadow Maggie. Ryan also feels strange about referring to himself in the third person.

Find Ryan Hill Online:

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

Top Ten Tuesday: Tear-jerkers

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature / weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week we make a top ten list from a given topic.

This week's topic is

Top ten four books that made me cry

I don't usually cry while reading books (as opposed to watching TV or movies or even commercials), but there are a few books that really have made an impact on me.

1. Scotland by Starlight by Nancy Volkers
I cried and I cried and I cried. Then I pulled myself together and cried some more.

2. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince / Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
Need I say more? Still not convinced all of it was necessary.

3. The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch
You wouldn't think there'd be crying over this book. There was.

4. Matilda's Last Waltz by Tamara McKinley
This was my first Tamara McKinley book and it made a huge impact on me.


What books make you cry?

It's Monday, What Are You Reading?

 

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. It is where we gather to share what we have read this past week and what we plan to read this week.

Goodreads challenge status: Read 6 of 35 books – 3 books ahead of schedule.

READ LAST WEEK
Since my last Monday post two weeks ago I've read Stiltskin by Andrew Buckley (read my review), a fresh spin on the classic fairy tales. Then Where'd You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple finally arrived in the mail, and I devoured it in just a couple of days, which is really fast for me (I seem to be reading a lot more and a lot faster this year, go me!). I absolutely loved it (read my review)! I also read Double Crossed by Ally Carter, a crossover between her Heist Society and Gallagher Girls series.

CURRENTLY READING
Double Crossed put me in an Ally Carter mood, so I picked up book 2 in the Gallagher Girls series, Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy. I waited until late last year to start the series because I didn't think I'd like it, but it turned out I was very much mistaken. :)

WHAT'S NEXT
I think I'll pick up the Inkheart trilogy by Cornelia Funke again. I've already read Inkheart and Inkspell, but it's been so long I want to re-read both of them before starting Inkdeath.

What are you reading this week?

Thoughts on Where'd You Go, Bernadette

Where'd You Go, Bernadette

By Maria Semple

First published: August 2012 by Little, Brown and Company

Read: 27 - 30 January 2014

Links: Goodreads | Amazon

Author online: Website | Facebook

Description
Bernadette Fox is notorious. To her Microsoft-guru husband, she's a fearlessly opinionated partner; to fellow private-school mothers in Seattle, she's a disgrace; to design mavens, she's a revolutionary architect, and to 15-year-old Bee, she is a best friend and, simply, Mom.

Then Bernadette disappears. It began when Bee aced her report card and claimed her promised reward: a family trip to Antarctica. But Bernadette's intensifying allergy to Seattle—and people in general—has made her so agoraphobic that a virtual assistant in India now runs her most basic errands. A trip to the end of the earth is problematic.

To find her mother, Bee compiles email messages, official documents, secret correspondence—creating a compulsively readable and touching novel about misplaced genius and a mother and daughter's role in an absurd world. (Goodreads)

My thoughts

Oh, Bernadette. Where do I even start with you? I had read so much praise for this book and I'm pleased to say it's all deserved. Where'd You Go, Bernadette is simply delightful in every way.

It is an epistolary novel, made up of various written documents which bit by bit reveal the story of Bernadette Fox and help explain how she became the woman she is today. It is all weaved together by notes from Bernadette's daughter Bee. This style is very effective, adding to the mystery and providing different perspectives. The last part of the book is Bee telling us how it all turned out in the end – and what a great, satisfactory ending it was.

The book is fun and witty, but also poignant and touching. Through it all there's an underlying sadness, and you can feel it building up to something terrible. I reached a point where I almost didn't want to read any further because I was dreading what was coming, but at the same time there was no way I could stop because I absolutely needed to know what happened.

The cast of characters is quite amazing, and to be honest I think everyone is a little crazy on some level. In addition to the relationship between Bernadette and her family, Bee and Elgin, I found the dynamics between her and her neighbour, fellow school mum and nemesis Audrey Griffin, very interesting, and it did not go where I thought it would. Then again, neither did a lot of the story.

Bottom line: Where'd You Go, Bernadette is a funny and heartwarming novel with memorable characters and a lot of heart. It will stay with you long after you've turned the last page.

My rating:

5/6

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