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Saturday, December 4, 2010

The King is in the Hizzle!

That's what I said to my Dad the other night. And he said "What?" What I meant was "Your Stephen King book arrived in the mail and I've been devouring it". And I do mean devouring. My Dad and I have this deal- every time a new Stephen King comes out I buy it for him for Christmas. But I carefully remove the cover and only open it so far (as to not break the spine) and read it before I wrap it up. I have more reading time and read faster so it works great.

The new Stephen King Full Dark, No Stars is phenomenal. It really illustrates, more than any of his other works I've read, why he deserves the literary praise that is often not given to horror genre writers. The four novellas or very long stories in this novel succeed not just because they have a slight supernatural theme running through them, but because they are so carefully crafted. They aren't just scary stories, they're literary gems. Each tale paints a picture (granted, a very dark picture) so vivid that you can't help but visualize the setting. And the characters are so well thought out that you can't help but lose yourself in their stories. Each tale reminds us that we all have a little dark, a little other, inside of us. They are fully fleshed ordinary characters in extraordinary situations.

I read the whole book in three nights. Two of those nights I stayed up well past one because I could not put the book down until I finished the story. And I'm still thinking about the stories. And that my friends, is the mark of a true master, when you're still thinking about the story days later. Bravo Mr. King.

In the words of Oliver Twist; "Please sir, may I have another?"

♥Gert

Monday, September 20, 2010

I've been reading...

Forgive me readers, for I have sinned. It's been months since my last blog post. I don't know why either. It's not like I ever stop reading!! So to get back in the swing of things, and try to convince Hildi to do the same, I'm not going to do any in depth reviews but give several recommendations from my recent readings.

As you know, if you've read this blog for any length of time, my reading tastes are very eclectic. I love horror (or paranormal, supernatural, whatever sub genre you want to stick that in), romance, historical fiction and literary. I'm as all over the place with my reading as I am with my writing. So lets wade in...

One of my all time top 5 favorite writers is Jeanne Kalogridis. She writes some of the best historical fiction out there and I never fail to be completely enthralled by her work. The most recent book I've read by her is no exception. The Devil's Queen is a novel about Catherine De Medici. One of the most reviled women in history, yet Kalogridis brings her to life with sympathy and passion. Making you root for her character even though she uses black magic to get what she wants. I could not put this book down. I recommended it to two people who also got hooked.

I also read The Memoirs of Mary, Queen of Scots by Carolly Erickson. Erickson has written several books as diaries of notable women figures in history. All are good and this one is no exception. It was also interesting to read from Mary's point of view some of the same events from the Kalogridis book. (Mary was raised at the french court while Catherine was queen).

Let's switch to horror...I got Alexandra Sokoloff's newest book Book of Shadows with some trepidation. I'm a huge fan of her books The Harrowing and The Price but had felt let down by The Unseen, the book before this one. I was in luck, however. Because Book of Shadows delivered the chills. It was a great murder mystery with a delicious supernatural twist. I also gave Nate Kenyon a try and read The Bone Factory. It was very spooky. I enjoyed his writing very much and thought it was a taut thriller. I got another of his books, Sparrow Rock. Another delicious read. You know I love my apocalyptic fiction!

I also started Heather Graham's new trilogy with books 1 and 2, Ghost Shadow and Ghost Night. I really enjoyed them, in fact I can't wait to visit Key West this summer, but I think sometimes her writing gets a little formulaic and predictable. In both cases, I guessed the bad guy/guys before the end of the book. But it won't stop me from picking up Ghost Moon!

And I also devoured an Elizabeth Berg. Truly the woman is a genius. I never fail to be completely caught up in her books. She writes characters so easily relatable that you can't help but keep reading because you truly care about them. And The Last Time I Saw You is no exception. It didn't matter that all of the characters were almost twenty years older than my current age. They had hopes, dreams and disappointments that I could understand and echo. I think her books are best served straight through and luckily I was able to do just that and finish it in one non-stop reading session. I recommend you do the same.

Well that's it for me for now kids. But I'm hoping to have a truly awesome surprise soon with an author interview for you. And maybe a chance to win something...

Gert♥

Monday, July 19, 2010

Summer reading!

My only excuse for not being current on this blog is that I have been reading, reading and reading! Oh yes, and being a mommy. There for a while I was on a mission to read all the Stephen King books I had so wrongfully missed out on over the years. Truly I was a fanatic. I gobbled them up with a gusto. All the while with a slightly crazy gleam in my eye, like the veriest addict. For anyone who has read the master, you know exactly what I mean, and are likewise thrilled with the experience! We shall explore all those lovely novels later.
I would like to start my return to you with an author I hadn't read until a few weeks ago. Her name is Lynn Viehl, and she is very creative. The first book I read was Shadowlight. In the first nineteen pages I found myself not only hooked, but emotionally involved. Few and far between are the stories that actually make me verbalize my feelings, and I can tell you crying out "Nooo.." in the middle of a waiting room is rather embarrassing. The story goes on to tell us of a young woman named Jessa Bellamy and her unusual abilities. She is part of a special group of people that have been altered by vampire DNA. The bad guys are a monster corporation called Genhence masquerading as good guys. The good guys are hiding dark secrets and talents of there own. Poor Jessa is taken by Gaven Matthias so he can protect her from Genhence, help her deal with the past and find a safe future. Miss Viehl did a wonderful job of not only weaving an exciting plot with vivid characters, but also whetted my appetite for her other stories.
Dreamveil was the next book of her's I read. It follows one of the characters from Shadowlight and leads into another highly adventurous tale. This time Genhence isn't the only one after our heroine Rowan Dietrich and not even the worst. She deals with two love interests, a dark past fraught with nightmarish memories and a young homeless girl she can't seem to help. I felt like getting up and kicking some butt with Rowan. Of course I don't have any vampire DNA. Nor do I have other Kyndred, as these special people are called, looking out for me from afar. Once again by the end of the book I found myself looking forward to finding out more about these Kyndred and the very intriguing characters they make. If you like anything to do with vampires, fast paced tales of love and deception, secret groups with agendas or just plain love a great story then check out these books by Lynn Viehl. I promise they're worth it.
Well I must be off. Lots more great books to find and read.

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