Jenna Starborn, Sharon Shinn

Title: Jenna Starborn
Author: Sharon Shinn
Published: 2002, Ace
Category: Science Fiction / Romance
Rating: 7/10

I was really wanting to read Shinn's new book, Troubled Waters, but it's a hardcover so I didn't want to buy it and it's not available at any of my libraries. Sigh. So I read this one instead -- it's one of the few on Shinn's backlist that I hadn't read yet.

This is a science fiction retelling of Jane Eyre, which is a story that deserves retelling because it's so good. The plot follows the original story very closely, though the characters live on distant planets, Jenna is a nuclear reactor technician rather than a governess, and the unwanted wife's troubles are a bit different. I was torn between enjoying the futuristic version of the original story's events (which I know so well) and wishing that the plot was a little less similar. I've read Jane Eyre so many times that I knew exactly what was coming next.

Shinn captures the gothic, gloomy feel of Jane Eyre quite well, giving it a new spin by placing most of the action on a dark and inhospitable world. Jenna is as annoyingly good and moral as Jane is, though somehow you still end up liking her. My one real complaint about the book is actually also a problem I have with Jane Eyre: the overdramatic, "If I can't have you, I'll die!" ultra-romantic, overwrought action of the love story. I think this is why many people love Jane Eyre, but it's never sat particularly well with me. But it's a great story, nonetheless. :)

The Search, Nora Roberts

Title: The Search

Author: Nora Roberts

Published: Putnam, 2010

Rating: 7/10

La Nora's summer release for this year, picked up from the library for a nice weekend read. Her books don't really wow me (I think I've read too many for them to do that anymore), but they're almost always a pleasant read.

Fiona Bristow lives a peaceful existence on Orcas Island in Washington. She trains dogs for a living, including search and rescue dogs. One day she gets a new client with a very badly behaved puppy named Jaws. His owner, Simon, turns out to be quite the hottie, and Fiona ends up spending lots of time with both him and Jaws. The suspense plot in the book revolves around a serial killer who is mimicking an earlier killer who had tried to kill Fiona and failed. It soon becomes obvious that the new killer is targeting Fiona, trying to kill her when his predecessor had failed.

I found the suspense in this book to be quite tepid, which to be honest is just fine by me. When pages were devoted to the killer's movements and motivations, I was just reading through to get back to the good stuff. The good stuff being the descriptions of Fiona's life as a dog trainer, her relationships with her friend and mother-in-law, and the romance between her and Simon. While Simon is not really my idea of a hero (a bit gruff and overbearing to me), it was nice to read about these two very independent people as they learn how to make a serious relationship work.

Roberts's language is a bit on the overdramatic side for me, but she is a great storyteller.

Jubilee Trail, Gwen Bristow

Author: Gwen Bristow
Published: Thomas Y. Crowell Company, 1950
Category: Historical Fiction
Rating: 5/10

I was browsing through AAR's DIK reviews a couple of weeks ago -- and found an A review for Jubilee Trail by Gwen Bristow. One of my favorite books of all time was written by Gwen Bristow (Celia Garth), and I realized that I'd never tried any of her other books. My library had this one, so I gave it a try.

Garnet Cameron turns 18 in the year 1844. She is the daughter of a nice, well-to-do family, who live in a nice house on Union Square in New York City. She has marriage offers from respectable men who, well, bore her. She wants adventure in a time when young ladies of good birth didn't get to have adventures. Then she meets Oliver Hale, a man who makes his living by trading along the Jubilee Trail, which stretches from St. Louis to California. When Oliver proposes, Garnet jumps at the chance to have an exciting life. And off they go on their way to California.

Now I think I understand why my mom (who gave me Celia Garth) never gave me this one to read. I read this whole, looong book, but I was close to giving up lots of times. By the end I was skimming because while I really wanted to stop, for some reason I also wanted to know what happened in the end. I think this means that the story and plot was good, but that the characters were poorly done.

Garnet is naive, but plucky and brave in a way that is not very believable (and, imo, quite annoying). She, and all the other characters, struck me as sadly one-dimensional. Her adventures seem unrealistic too. And one thing that really disgusted me was several scenes in which the Indians encountered along the way are described as non-human. Now, this book was published in 1950, but that doesn't excuse it.

Honestly, this book made me wonder what I would think of Celia Garth had I read it for the first time now, instead of when I was a preteen. I know that my standards have gotten a lot higher.

Bibs for a Baby!

We found out a couple of months ago that Collin's sister is having another baby. Which means, yippeee! A baby to sew for!


My first projects for the little one were these cute quilted bibs. I found the pattern here. They go together really fast. And they're washable, so they can actually be used.


I'm working on a baby quilt now!

Death in the Stocks, Georgette Heyer

Author: Georgette Heyer
Published: 2009 (reprint), Sourcebooks, originally 1935
Category: Mystery
Rating: 5/10

I have been steadily reading Heyer books (with great delight) since I discovered her a few years ago. She has a huge backlist, which consists of historical romances, mysteries, and historical fiction. The romances, of course, are my favorites -- but I'm running out of new ones to read! So, I picked up this mystery when I saw the pretty re-issued edition by Sourcebooks.

Andrew Vereker is found dead, his corpse carefully arranged so he's sitting in the stocks on the green of some little English village. The police soon have more suspects than they can handle: the nephew who is heir to Vereker's fortune, a corrupt employee who was cooking the books, a mysterious stranger who was seen fighting with Vereker before his death. Everyone seems to be lying about where they were the night of the murder, and everyone seems to have hated the deceased.

I was sadly disappointed by this book. For one thing, I totally guessed who "done it" really early in the book, which either means I'm really clever or it was obvious. I think it's the latter, because I never know who the murderer is when reading mysteries. I'm nearly always surprised in the end. My second reason for not liking the book: I found all the characters extremely annoying. They struck me as lazy, spoiled, selfish, snobby upper-class Brits and I didn't like them. A couple of people grew on me toward the end, but it was waaaay too long coming.

The only saving grace for me was the intelligent, witty dialogue, which is classic Heyer. I'm undecided whether I want to try any more Heyer mysteries. Anyone have any advice? There are a couple of her romances that I haven't read yet -- will definitely have to track them down.

What I Did for Love, Susan Elizabeth Phillips

Author: Susan Elizabeth Phillips
Published: 2009, William Morrow
Category: Contemporary Romance
Rating: 7/10

SEP books are a little bit hit-or-miss for me, but every few months I crave one -- mostly because I think Phillips has such a good sense of humor. Her books always have some great, funny dialogue.

Georgie York is a young actress who has been in the public eye since she was a teenager starring in a popular sitcom. At the beginning of the book, her life isn't going so well: her career has stagnated and she's just been dumped by her perfect actor husband (think Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt). Through crazy events I can't quite remember, she wakes up from a drunken Las Vegas night married to her old costar Bram Shephard. Bram is a serious bad-boy movie star (gorgeous but selfish and spoiled). Georgie is appalled to be married to him, but can't face the embarrassment of another high-profile divorce. Bram, on the other hand, is getting some great publicity and career boost out of the marriage. So the two make a pact to stay married for a year.

I think every one of is fascinated to some extent by the movie star lifestyle, and this book definitely satisfies that. I'm not one to follow Hollywood gossip, but even so it was still amusing to read about it all. It helps that the main characters are fairly down-to-earth and nice -- Georgie especially is way more normal than most stars probably are. There's a nice big cast of characters, and we actually get two little romantic subplots that are quite nice.

So my verdict is -- slightly ridiculous plot, but still a satisfying read.

Maybe This Time, Jennifer Crusie

Author: Jennifer Crusie
Published: 2010, St. Martin's Press
Category: Contemporary Romance
Rating: 7.5/10

Jennifer Crusie is one of my all-time favorite authors, and we have been waiting a looong time for a solo book from her. She's been co-authoring books, but it's been years since we got an all-Crusie book. I should have been counting down the hours until this was published - but what with all my crazy summer, I'd pretty much forgotten about it. Until the other day I was browsing through my library's new books, and I saw it on the shelf! A loud gasp escaped me as I snatched it off the shelf and held it up like the holy grail. The little undergraduate next to me gave me a funny look. But that's okay. I took it home and had a lovely Saturday, reading all day long stretched out on the couch.

Andie Miller is ready to get engaged, but before she can go through with it she feels like she needs some closure with her ex-husband. So she visits him to return years of uncashed alimony checks. He's having a slight crisis -- he's become the guardian of some young cousins and he needs someone to take care of them. He offers to pay Andie a boatload of money to go out to their house in rural Ohio and see what's what. Andie's got a soft heart (plus she could really use that money), so she accepts. What she finds is an ancient, dirty, creepy house, a hostile and weird housekeeper, and two seriously messed up kids. It comes out that the house is haunted -- so not only does Andie need to help these troubled children, she also has to figure out how to exorcise some ghosts. And decide if she's still in love with her ex-husband.

This was a good read, though I don't think it'll be a favorite Crusie. It had many of the things that I love about Crusie's books: an extremely likable heroine, funny dialogue, and complex relationships that really seem genuine (Andie's relationship with Alice is especially well done). The love story is classic Crusie and very satisfying.

What didn't sit so well with me is the ghostly aspects of the book. It's not something Crusie has done before, and I'm just not sure it works for me. This may be just a personal thing -- I'm really not a fan of ghost stories. But the combination of light romantic comedy and dark, gothic thriller seemed an uncomfortable mix -- it wasn't scary enough to be a serious ghost story, but the ghost story was serious enough to make it certainly out of the realm of light comedy.

Still, it's a Crusie book, so I have no reason to complain. I plowed through it in a day and it was a highly enjoyable day. Here's hoping she writes many more. :)

Wake up, bloggy!

I am going to try to revive the blog! I've haven't really been posting with any frequency for years, but I want to start again. I've missed it. Life has finally settled down a little, I've been reading more again, so hopefully I can get a couple of posts up a week. We'll try anyway. :)

Some life updates, for those interested:

I haven't mentioned this guy yet, have I? I met my very own real-life hero over two years ago. He's better than any fictional hero I've ever read about. His name is Collin. He fully supports my reading habits, even though sometimes he likes to read the back cover copy in a dramatic voice and make fun of it. That's okay. I make fun of his fantasy sports, so we're about even.

Twin got married! Wasn't she a beautiful bride? And she's so happy! She had the most lovely wedding I've ever been to -- full of personal touches and happy people. Twin has disgustingly good taste, so the whole day was gorgeous. She's been posting about it on her blog.

I graduated from the library science program at UNC Chapel Hill in May. I'm a librarian! So exciting. Less exciting was the job search that followed -- but I was extremely fortunate and got a fabulous job as the Web Librarian at Appalachian State University. So Collin and I have moved to Boone, which is a small town in the mountains of North Carolina. And they pay me to play with the web all day! Score.

All right, I've just finished the new Jennifer Crusie book -- let's see how long it takes me to get a review up. :)

Blog Hiatus

I'm finishing up my masters degree (graduation on May 9!!). Obviously the blog has been on a break for a while, but I definitely plan to resuscitate it this summer. I really want to get back to reviewing books, and I should have lots more time for reading. Right now, I need to concentrate on finishing my Masters Paper and, um, getting a job. :)

Some great books I've read lately:

Michelle Moran's books about Egypt (love them!)

Julia Spencer-Fleming's Reverend Clare Fergusson mystery series (I've just read the first one and can't wait to get to the rest)

Sara Donati finished up her Into the Wilderness series with The Endless Forest

Jennifer Crusie's re-issued The Cinderella Deal

See you in a couple months!

Giveaway over on the Mary Stewart blog

Hi everyone! I'm still alive, just very busy with school. I'm popping in to announce that we're giving away a Mary Stewart book over on the Stewart blog. Never read Stewart??!! Here's your chance. It's an amazing book, so head on over and enter to win.

Re-reading

My mom recently forwarded me a New York Times editorial titled "Some Thoughts on the Pleasures of Being a Re-Reader." It's a great article and describes exactly how I feel about re-reading. The author talks about how many people brag about never reading the same book twice, desiring to always discover new information. But she says, "At heart, I’m a re-reader. The point of reading outward, widely, has always been to find the books I want to re-read and then to re-read them." I always make fun of my mother because she reads the same books over and over and over again. Your chances are pretty good if you guess that Maurice Walsh's And No Quarter or Susan Howatch's The Wonder Worker are on her bedside table. She has read some new stuff on my suggestion and I'm always very proud of myself if one of those books becomes a re-reading favorite (Jennifer Crusie's books are an example).

But I looooove to re-read too. It's so comforting to settle into a book that you know you're going to love, because you've loved it before. I've spend the last couple weeks re-reading Harry Potter numbers 6 and 7. (Number 6 so that I'm ready for the movie to come out, and 7 because I couldn't stop myself.) Then none of my new books really called to me, so I've started re-reading Sara Donati's Into the Wilderness books.

Occasionally I think that I shouldn't be wasting my precious summer re-reading old books -- I should be discovering new great books. But then I realize that I only have a limited time available to read for fun, so I'll do whatever gives me the most pleasure. And right now that's re-reading favorites. :)

Upcoming books/Updates for my favorite authors

I've been web surfing, checking up on all my favorite authors. Here's the latest:

Kelley Armstrong: I still haven't gotten to reading her latest in the Otherworld series (Living with the Dead). It's definitely on the list for this summer. She's announced the next book in the series: Frostbitten, which will be out in November. Looks like Clay and Elena will be narrating. Woo hoo!

I've kind of lost interest in her other two ongoing series (YA Darkest Powers and thriller Nadia Stafford). They're just not quite my cuppa.

Mary Balogh has just put out the first four books in the Huxtable series. I've read the first and bought the second. But why is the fourth one in hardcover when all the others were paperback? I do not understand the reasoning there. The last book in the series will be out next year (I think).

Meljean Brook: The next Guardians book is out in October. Yay!

Lois McMaster Bujold is in the midst of writing a new Miles book. (Her MySpace blog says she's about halfway through.) This does not actually terribly excite me as I still have many, many older books in the Miles series still to read. It will take a couple years to catch up. But still good news for most fans.

Loretta Chase's newest is due out at the end of the month! Don't Tempt Me.

Jennifer Crusie has a pretty new website, but unfortunately no good news on upcoming books. She's planning to release a Mayer/Crusie sometime in 2009 and a solo book (!!!!) in 2010.

Sara Donati has announced the publication date for the next (and final) Wilderness book!!! YAYYYY!!!! This one makes me ecstatic. The Endless Forest (nice title) will be out January 26, 2010. Less than 8 months to wait.

Eva Ibbotson: Penguin has just republished The Magic Flutes as The Reluctant Heiress. Have already read it and will post a review soon. Preview: it's lovely.

Eloisa James: Just bought her newest last night. This Duchess of Mine is Jemma and Elijah's story. And she has another book coming out 7/28 -- A Duke of Her Own, which is Villier's story. Two books in one summer -- nice!

Susanna Kearsley is writing "a story of historical suspense set on the southern coast of Cornwall." Excellent! Will keep stalking her website for more details.

Carla Kelly: Bought her newest last night as well -- The Surgeon's Lady. This is the second in a trilogy, I believe. Don't know whether the third has been announced yet. Anyone know?

J.K. Rowling -- The 6th Harry Potter movie is out in mid-July. The previews look good. I need to start my pre-movie reread of Half-Blood Prince soon.

Sharon Shinn: I still haven't read Fortune and Fate, the newest in her Twelve Houses series. Gotta get to that soon. I'm excited about Quatrain (due out October 6) which is a book of four novellas, each set in a different world that she's created (especially excited about the one set in Samaria and the one set in the Summers at Castle Auburn world).

Mary Stewart -- Chicago Review Press is re-releasing My Brother Michael (one of my favorites!) in November.

Lean Mean Thirteen, Janet Evanovich

Author: Janet Evanovich
Published: 2007, St. Martin's Press
Category: Fiction
Rating: 5.5/10

I've had this book sitting in the TBR pile since it came out two years ago. I read the first 8 or so books in this series with absolute enjoyment -- really great reading. The later books just haven't been living up to the earlier ones. I'm not really sure why, though I'm guessing that it's because they're really all the same at this point. The characters aren't developing, the plots and the jokes all feel like slight variations on an earlier theme. And the love triangle, which was cute at first, is now just annoying.

But I picked this one up finally when I saw adds for Finger Lickin' Fifteen, which is due out at the end of the month. Lean Mean Thirteen was a fun read, though still pretty disappointing.

Stephanie is again broke and struggling in her job as a bounty hunter. She's chasing her usual list of crazy FTAs (failure to appear in court), this time including a grave robber and a taxidermist with anger management issues. She has another fight with her slimy ex-husband, Dickie Orr, and when Dickie goes MIA everyone thinks that she's murdered him. We soon find out that Dickie's law firm was definitely into some shady dealings and 40 million dollars is missing along with Dickie. The partners in his firm (who are really mobster-types) are all looking for Stephanie to find out where their money is.

This book had me rolling my eyes almost constantly. I think the problem is that Evanovich feels the need to top the craziness of the previous book. So while originally it was funny that Stephanie's cars all get destroyed, now she goes through 2-3 of them per book. It just all becomes too ridiculous. And if Joe Morelli asked my advice on his love life, I'd tell him to move on because he deserves better.

I'm not sure if I'll read #14. Any advice here? I'm definitely not shelling out hardcover price for it. Maybe one day I'll get it from the library. Or maybe I'll go back to One for the Money and start re-reading the next time I'm in the mood.

Secret Society Girl, Diana Peterfreund

Author: Diana Peterfreund
Published: 2007, Bantam
Category: Young Adult Fiction
Rating: 7/10

I picked this one up from the library mostly because Li loves the series and I was looking for something light (not like what most of what I read isn't "light", but you know what I mean). There are currently four books out in the series.

Amy Haskel is a junior at ultra-preppy, ivy league Eli University. It's a big deal at this school to be chosen for one of the many secret societies, and junior year is when it happens. Amy is waiting to be tapped by the literary society, when she instead gets an invitation from Rose & Grave, the oldest and most notorious society on campus. She thinks at first it's a hoax, seeing as how Rose & Grave picks the most elite (and generally richest) students. And they've never before tapped women. We see Amy's crazy initiation, meet the very interesting and zany people also tapped that year, and watch the backlash as the society's alumni question the group's decision to admit women.

I did enjoy this book. It's sort of fun to live vicariously through Amy as she attends this swanky, elite university and hobnobs with the rich and beautiful people. It's saved from being Gossip-Girl-vapid by the fact that Amy is very down-to-earth and sensible, and surprisingly resistant to the snobbery. I've requested the second book from the library. :)

Powder and Patch, Georgette Heyer

Author: Georgette Heyer
Published: 1923, Mills & Boon originally, most recent edition is Harlequin, 2004
Category: Historical Fiction
Rating: 7.5/10

I am still making my way through Georgette Heyer's huge list of historical romances. Someday I will run out of new Heyers to read and it will be a sad, sad day. But then I will re-read them all and be happy again.

Powder and Patch follows Philip Jettan, the son of a country squire. Philip loves his country life, and at 19 has no wish to taste the delights of town. He's also in love with the belle of the neighborhood, the beautiful Cleone. Cleone returns his affections, but is appalled by his lack of town polish. He's a bit of a country bumpkin, see, and in that age such coarseness is unforgivable in an English gentleman. So Philip, whose marriage proposal has been rejected, takes off for Paris and London to begin a transformation into the powdered, foppish man he thinks Cleone wants.

This book seemed shorter and simpler than many of Heyer's -- fewer characters and a less complicated plot. According to this bibliography, Powder and Patch was only Heyer's third novel and was originally titled The Transformation of Philip Jettan (which I think is a better title). Still a very charming read, though. Philip is a lovable character and it's fun to see how he transforms himself from a gauche boy into the toast of London.

The Penderwicks, Jeanne Birdsall

Title: The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy
Author: Jeanne Birdsall
Published: 2007, Random House
Category: Children's Fiction
Rating: 9/10

I can't remember how I discovered this book, but I am so so so happy I did. Because I love the Penderwicks! I want to be a Penderwick with all my soul. :)

The Penderwick family consists of four sisters, their absent-minded but devoted father, and a huge and badly behaved dog. Their mother died years ago, and it's fallen to the older sisters, especially the eldest, Rosalind, to take care of the youngest, an adorable four-year-old named Batty. This first book takes place during the family summer vacation -- they rent a cottage in rural Massachusetts. When they arrive they find out that the cottage is on the grounds of a great estate called Arundel, which is owned by an icy, snobby lady whose only forgiving trait is a son named Jeffrey who quickly becomes fast friends with the girls.

The Penderwicks get into all sorts of scrapes and have many summer adventures. We get to know each sister, who are all very much individuals. The book is funny and sweet, and just completely charming.

The book has a very 1950s sort of nostalgia to it; the girls don't play video games or watch TV, they play with dolls or run around outside exploring or playing soccer. My taste in books often runs a bit to the old-fashioned (some of my favorite authors are L.M. Montgomery, Mary Stewart, Louisa May Alcot, and Eva Ibbotson). Sweet nostalgic books are my comfort -- especially in children's literature. Cozy books you want to wrap around yourself are the best.

Title: The Penderwicks on Gardam Street
Author: Jeanne Birdsall
Published: 2008, Random House
Category: Children's Fiction
Rating: 9.5/10

The second in the Penderwick series. Jeanne Birdsall's website says that she's working on a third (yay!) and there will be five books in all (yay yay!). This book picks up almost immediately after the first one -- the Penderwicks are home again, returning to school and their normal activities. One thing upsets their happy equilibrium: their aunt arrives with a letter that their mother had written before she died, telling their father that it's time he started dating again. Mr. P doesn't really want to date, and the girls really really don't want him to date. So the sisters implement the Save-Daddy Plan to sabotage his reluctant efforts at dating.

I think I might have liked this one even better than the first. My favorite part was when Sky and Jane (the two middle sisters) switch homework assignments (one's good at science and the other's good at writing) with hilarious results. I can't wait to read the next book. :)

Catch-up reviews

Did you know that root canals are really, really not fun? I do now. Sigh. Everyone thank their lucky stars for their healthy teeth -- they are so important!

Otherwise, I am enjoying my summer so far. Getting lots of good reading in. Here are some mini-reviews of books I've read over the last few weeks.

Title: Angelica
Author: Sharon Shinn
Published: 2003, Ace
Category: Science Fiction
Rating: 8.5/10
I started out not loving Shinn's Samaria series, but I have completely changed my mind. If you haven't read the series, you have to start with Archangel, or you'll really miss out. Angelica was published fourth in the series, but it actually takes place first (I think). But it should definitely be read after Archangel, Jovah's Angel, and The Alleluia Files.

More than a hundred years before Archangel, Samaria is visited at random intervals by mysterious strangers dressed all in black. They appear and disappear, leaving behind fires of utter destruction. The Archangel Gaaron is glad that his new Edori bride, Susannah, is a calm and capable woman who can help him through this crisis, while aiding him in the impossible task of controlling his wild sister Miriam. What Gaaron doesn’t know is that Susannah, who still mourns for her former lover, has a secret connection to the god Jovah—a secret that could save the whole planet. He also doesn’t know that his runaway sister has met one of the invaders and is prepared to risk everything to keep him alive.

I loved this one! So interesting. The theme is all about feeling out of place -- Susannah feels lonely and isolated among the angels and Gaaron's human sister, Miriam, feels isolated among the angels. It's so satisfying when they finally find their place that feels like "home." And the action is really exciting too.

Title: First Comes Marriage
Author: Mary Balogh
Published: 2009, Dell
Category: Historical Romance
Rating: 6.5/10
The first in Balogh's new trilogy. Balogh is still an autobuy for me -- they're always comforting reads for me.

Against the scandal and seduction of Regency England, New York Times bestselling author Mary Balogh introduces an extraordinary family—the fiery, sensual Huxtables. Vanessa is the second daughter, proud and daring, a young widow who has her own reason for pursuing the most eligible bachelor in London. One that has nothing to do with love. Or does it?

The arrival of Elliott Wallace, the irresistibly eligible Viscount Lyngate, has thrown the country village of Throckbridge into a tizzy. Desperate to rescue her eldest sister from a loveless union, Vanessa Huxtable Dew offers herself instead. In need of a wife, Elliott takes the audacious widow up on her unconventional proposal while he pursues an urgent mission of his own. But a strange thing happens on the way to the wedding night. Two strangers with absolutely nothing in common can’t keep their hands off each other. Now, as intrigue swirls around a past secret—one with a stunning connection to the Huxtables—Elliott and Vanessa are uncovering the glorious pleasures of the marriage bed…and discovering that when it comes to wedded bliss, love can’t be far behind.

Enjoyable, though not particularly memorable. I did like it enough to buy the second in the series, and I'm sure I'll read it next time I'm in the mood for a nice Regency. I liked the relationship among the Huxtables best (their parents died and they've taken care of each other for years) -- the romance in this one was a bit problematic. Why do the ugly ducklings always have to be so sweet and perfectly well-adjusted? I found Vanessa a bit annoying.


Title: Rachel's Holiday
Author: Marian Keyes
Published: 1998, Avon
Category: General Fiction/ Chick Lit
Rating: 6/10
I read this for a book group that met twice and then sadly died. I really enjoyed it though -- for all that I love to read, I've never been in a book club before. I might try to find another.

Twenty-seven and the miserable owner of size eight feet, Rachel Walsh enjoys two naughty habits: a lover who likes his leather pants tight, and a fondness for recreational drugs. But as Rachel learns, what goes up must come down. First she loses her job, then her lover, and then finds herself being marched off to the Cloisters, Dublin's answer to the Betty Ford Clinic. Outraged—surely she's not thin enough to be an addict!—it suddenly dawns on Rachel that it's about time she had a vacation, and where better than a place crammed with jacuzzis, gyms, and rock stars going tepid turkey? What she gets instead, however, are middle-aged men in sweaters and enough group therapy to drive her to distraction.

This was a really fast, easy read (though it was long -- her editor could have slashed at least 200 pages). It was an interesting look at drug addiction -- it seemed to capture the experience well while still being funny and not too heavy. The gradual revelations about just how sad and pathetic Rachel's life had gotten were well done. I did find her extremely annoying at times -- her naivete and denial got old. And there is a sort-of love story, which I thought was distracting from the more important story of Rachel's recovery.


Title: Heart of Gold
Author: Sharon Shinn
Published: 2000, Ace
Category: Science Fiction
Rating: 7/10
Another Shinn -- this is one of her stand-alone novels.

Two races—the matriarchal indigo and the patriarchal gulden—uneasily co-exist in a single shared metropolis. Nolan, a young indigo male, loves his job working in a biological lab, though he knows he will soon be called home to his family estates to marry his longtime fiancee. Everything in his life changes when he meets Kitrini, a high-caste indigo woman who has defiantly thrown her lot in with the gulden. Issues of class, culture, gender, prejudice, loyalty, and honor shape their choices when Nolan and Kitrini realize that he holds the knowledge that could save the life of the man Kitrini has always loved.

Not my favorite Shinn. The premise is interesting, but I found the racial drama a bit heavy-handed. And I didn't like the way the heroine is in love with someone else (a terrorist, too!) for about 3/4 of the book. Makes her look a little inconsistent. Still a good read, though.

Library School: Semester 2

I'm not sure if anyone who reads this blog is at all interested in a librarian's education. But I know that when I was trying to decide whether to go to library school or not I had lots of questions about what it would be like. So I'll add my two cents, in case anyone is in a similar pickle. Short answer: Library school is awesome! Read on for the long answer.

I'm now officially halfway through my two-year program at UNC. Woot! First semester wrap-up is here. This semester I took:

Human-Information Interactions You might be thinking, what the hell does that mean? Well, I was asking that too. This is the basic information science theory class that we're all required to take. Basic questions covered: What is information? Why and how do people seek information in different contexts? How do we assess and evaluate information? I was dreading this class because it sounded abstract and theoretical and horrible. But I actually really enjoyed it. Good professor definitely helped.



Organization of Information This class was a giant headache, though I did learn a lot about how information professionals organize information (not only bibliographic info, but all kinds, including business). Our semester-long project was to invent a system of organization for any kind of "document" we wanted -- a classmate and I did board games, which was pretty fun. If that sounds interesting, you can see the whole project here.

Management for Information Professionals This class was a bit of a joke. I understand why it's a requirement (as librarians we will probably all have to supervise people), but it all seemed very much common sense to me. But it was a really, really easy class, so I'm not complaining. My final project was a website about work-life balance (beware: it's quite bull-shitty).

Web Development My favorite class this semester! I completely love making websites. We learned XHTML and CSS (and whoa, was I creating some seriously non-standard and messy HTML before this class). We also did a little PHP, which about made my head explode because I'd never had any programming. But I think I got the important bits. I created two websites for the class (both completely HAND-CODED, oh boy!): Body Systems (a pretend gym equipment company) and Durham Speaks (a prototype that may actually be used by the Durham Public Library for their oral history project).



So next year I get to take 7 more classes, write a master's paper, and find the perfect job. Hmmm. That's several months away, though. :)

This summer I'm continuing with my job at a branch library at UNC. And I also got a really cool internship georeferencing historic maps (so that we can overlay a historic map on a current google map and people can see how areas have changed over time). It's really fun!



I've got catch-up book reviews that I'll post soon. :)

More beautiful library photos here!

Another books meme.

One more paper to clean up and I'm officially done with my semester. And halfway to my Masters degree! Phew. Good thing I have the summer to recharge. And read lots of fun books!!

So to ease myself back into blogging, a meme:

1) What author do you own the most books by?
Mary Stewart -- I own all her romantic suspense and historical fiction books. Two copies of most of them -- they take up at least two shelves.

2) What book do you own the most copies of?
L.M. Montgomery's The Blue Castle. Two mass market copies that are falling apart from being read so many times. And I bought myself a hardcover 1920 edition off eBay a few months ago. Pretty! Loves it sooo much.

3) Did it bother you that both those questions ended with prepositions?
NO. That is the stupidest grammar rule ever. “This is the sort of bloody nonsense up with which I will not put.” --Winston Churchill

4) What fictional character are you secretly in love with?
Sir Peter Wimsey. He's funny and brilliant.

5) What book have you read the most times in your life (excluding picture books read to children; i.e., Goodnight Moon does not count)?
Hands down, The Blue Castle. It's my comfort book. Second place is probably Persuasion, by Jane Austen.

6) What was your favorite book when you were ten years old?
I don't really remember. Was this the age I was reading The Baby-Sitters Club books? There was a Super Edition where all the girls went on a Disney cruise. That was definitely a favorite for a long time.

7) What is the worst book you've read in the past year?
I stopped keeping my reading spreadsheet this year, mostly because I wasn't reading much to put on there. And when I had time to read, I generally read sure-thing good books. But if I had to choose, I'd say either The Conquest, by Elizabeth Chadwick (yawn) or Rachel's Holiday, by Marian Keyes. Neither were horrible, just sort of meh.

8) What is the best book you've read in the past year?
Sharon Shinn's Archangel series. OR The Penderwicks, by Jeanne Birdsall. OR The Sharing Knife: Horizon. I can't decide.

9) If you could force everyone you tagged to read one book, what would it be?
I'll go with The Penderwicks, because it'll make you young again.

10) Who deserves to win the next Nobel Prize for Literature?
I have no idea. I rarely read the sort of thing that wins the Noble Prize for Literature.

11) What book would you most like to see made into a movie?
The Blue Castle!! Or a Georgette Heyer book.

12) What book would you least like to see made into a movie?
Twilight.

13) Describe your weirdest dream involving a writer, book, or literary character.
I hardly ever remember my dreams, but I definitely had a couple bad dreams last night about bat-malices (see question #32).

14) What is the most lowbrow book you've read as an adult?
LOL. So many to choose from. Though this one probably takes the cake.

15) What is the most difficult book you've ever read?
The Intellectual Foundation of Information Organization, by Elaine Svenonius. We read this book for my organization of information class and it gave me so many headaches.

16) What is the most obscure Shakespeare play you've seen?
I've been to a lot, but not any obscure ones. (And can any of Shakespeare's plays really be considered obscure?)

17) Do you prefer the French or the Russians?
Wha?

18) Roth or Updike?
Never read either! Oh dear.

19) David Sedaris or Dave Eggers?
Sedaris, I think.

20) Shakespeare, Milton, or Chaucer?
I haven't read any of them since high school. I really should try them as an adult.

21) Austen or Eliot?
I don't think I've ever read Eliot, but there's no way she's going to beat Austen.

22) What is the biggest or most embarrassing gap in your reading?
Umm, "real" literature, obviously.

23) What is your favorite novel?
This Rought Magic, by Mary Stewart.

24) Play?
I haven't read too many plays, though I've seen lots. I LOVE musicals. The old-school big ones with lots of cheesy singing and choreographed dancing. The Music Man, Guys & Dolls, South Pacific.

25) Poem?
No thanks.

26) Essay?
I'm not really sure it counts as an essay, but I've loved "Caring for Your Introvert" by Jonathan Rauch ever since I discovered it years ago.

27) Short story?
I'm not much of a short story reader.

28) Work of nonfiction?
I don't read much nonficiton either! But I'm sure I can come up with something. Hmmmm. Martin's Hundred, by Ivor Noel Hume. Web Design in a Nutshell, by Jennifer Robbins. How to Cook Everything, by Mark Bittman.

29) Who is your favorite writer?
One? No way. Mary Stewart, L.M. Montgomery, Jane Austen, Georgette Heyer, Eva Ibbotson, Jennifer Crusie, Sara Donati, Lois McMaster Bujold, Sharon Shinn

30) Who is the most overrated writer alive today?
Dan Brown

31) What is your desert island book?
Are you tired of hearing about The Blue Castle yet?

32) And... what are you reading right now?
The Sharing Knife: Horizon by Lois McMaster Bujold. It's fabulous!!!

Marrying the Captain, Carla Kelly

Title: Marrying the Captain
Author: Carla Kelly
Published: 2008, Harlequin
Category: Historical Romance
Rating: 7.5/10

Hi everyone! My semester is going really well -- really interesting classes that are keeping me busy. I have had some time to read, though. So hopefully I'll get some more reviews up soon(ish). :)

A new Carla Kelly book! Yay!

Nana Massie is living with her grandmother in a run-down inn in Plymouth, struggling to make enough profit to get by. With a war on and money scarce, they're on the brink. This all changes when Captain Oliver Worthy shows up to stay in the inn while his ship is being repaired. Unknown to Nana, Oliver has arrived basically to spy on her; Nana's father (she's illegitimate) is a cowardly little man high up in the Royal Navy and he's asked Oliver to go check up on Nana. Apparently, some years earlier Nana's father had tried to pay off one of his debts by handing Nana off as a mistress. Nana refused and hasn't spoken to him since. Oliver thinks Nana's father is a slimeball, but he still agrees to go see Nana. Once there, he's so taken with her that he fobs off the father and spends his time getting to know Nana.

They, of course, fall in love, but a happy ever after seems impossible. He's promised himself that he wouldn't marry while he's a navy captain, because he doesn't want to leave some heartbroken widow behind. And she doesn't think she's good enough for him because she's illegitimate.

I have to say that I was just the tiniest bit impatient with the first half of this book. It's a very sweet love story, but the action is a bit slow. The second half is definitely not slow. It's got spies, a hostage situation on enemy soil, and other adventures for Nana and Oliver. Plus a fabulous ending. Loved it!

Classic Carla Kelly. Characters you'd want to get to know in real life because they just seem so nice. Kind, honest, hardworking hero and spirited, but also pragmatic, heroine. Sweet romance and interesting historical setting. Fans who were disappointed by the slight gruesomeness of her last book, Beau Crusoe, should definitely give this one a try. It's much more similar to her older books. And who doesn't love a naval hero?