'Hounded', 'Hexed' and 'Hammered' by Kevin Hearne

Normally I would split these books up into three posts, one review for each. But they fit together so seamlessly that it felt like one long book-- one long, action packed, deeply awesome book-- so I'm going to review them all together.

Let me start by saying that I downloaded these books onto my Nook on a whim. A friend of mine had praised them highly on her Goodreads page, and I thought hey, why not. It was a wise move; once I started I was hooked. The trilogy stars Atticus O'Sullivan, the last Druid on Earth, who looks like a twenty-year-old college kid but is really over two thousand years old. He's living under cover, owning and managing an occult bookstore/tea shop combo in Arizona, hanging out with an old Irish widow who lives nearby, flirting with the cute bartender at the local pub. On the surface it seems like he's living a totally normal life. Except for the part where he gets visited by the Irish goddess of Death, his lawyer is a Viking vampire who accepts payment in goblets of blood, and oh yeah, his dog can talk to him-- in his mind.

'Sweetly' by Jackson Pearce

Like its predecessor Sisters Red, Sweetly is a story we know inside and out, modernized and retold. Jackson Pearce has taken a classic fairy tale-- in this case, Hansel and Gretel-- and cut it open, messed around with its insides, and sewn it back up again. The story looks the same, and the bones of it haven't changed, but almost everything else about it has-- in my opinion, for the better.

schedule... again.

Hope you guys aren't getting sick of these yet. Next up on Plenty of Pages:

• 'Sweetly' by Jackson Pearce - finished reading, review by 1/13
• 'Hounded' by Kevin Hearne - finished reading, review by 1/16
• 'Hexed' by Kevin Hearne - 1/18
• 'Hammered' by Kevin Hearne - 1/21 
• 'Ghostopolis' by Doug TenNapel - 1/25
• 'Lonely Werewolf Girl' by Martin Millar - 1/30

As always, recommendations and comments are welcome. :)

--emily

'Bloodsucking Fiends' by Christopher Moore

Happy New Year, everyone!

So I said I was going to review "Treasure Island!!!" by Sara Levine, but I changed my mind. It was a fast and funny read, but the more I write these reviews the more I feel compelled to focus this blog on sci-fi and fantasy books, of which Levine's was not one. It was funny, but painfully so, a bit like if Kimmy Gibler had a cameo on an episode of Arrested Development : awkward and ridiculous, each interchange leaving me unsure if I was supposed to laugh or cringe, or both. I liked it, but it didn't wow me. (Sidebar-- the fact that most, if not all, kids who are graduating from high school this year have no idea who Kimmy Gibler is, is a tragedy of epic proportions. Discuss in comments.)

Moving on: I picked up Bloodsucking Fiends at last, after it sat on my shelf for almost a year, staring me down. I was expecting a quick read with a lot of laughs, and I wasn't disappointed. But I wasn't expecting the commentary, the intelligence in the humor, or how the book turned the romanticizing of vampires on its ear.

Happy New Year, everybody! Clearly my last schedule has been made a thorough shambles of-- sorry about that. But I'll be back soon with a new review. I dove into "Bloodsucking Fiends" by Christopher Moore today and expect to have it finished by the weekend.

In the meanwhile, this is only tangentially related to books, but for fans of Sherlock Holmes and the BBC's fantastic modernization of it, check out this great review of last Sunday's episode. "A Scandal in Belgravia" was, in my humble opinion, just about as perfect as 90 minutes of television can get. (The review does have lots of spoilers, so if you haven't seen the episode yet, tread carefully.) Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat are pretty much two of the coolest guys around; as good as series 1 of Sherlock was, I can tell they're on the road to outdoing themselves. Next week "The Hounds of Baskerville" airs, followed by "The Reichenbach Fall" the week after.

Til this weekend, then. Happy reading!
--emily

'The Stranger' by Max Frei

Okay, I give in. I can't do it. Max Frei, you have beaten me, and not in a good way. I was hoping not to come across a book I couldn't finish so soon after starting this blog, but I've been slogging away at this one for over two weeks now, and with a stack of other books waiting for me, I have to cry uncle. Want to know why The Stranger didn't hold water? Read on...

screw fitzgerald; i like exclamation marks

In the absence of recommendations from my friends or other blogs I read, I tend to head to the bookstore or the library and use my inner divining rod to lead me in the direction of stuff I'll like. This works well sometimes (I discovered Sarah Rees Brennan and the Kushiel series this way) and not so well other times. Like now, when I'm slogging through a book I'm not in love with, but don't hate enough to abandon. I should've known better than to try an experiment in reading during the week before Christmas when I work in retail...

At any rate, I bring you an updated schedule. Please note that I post these mostly for self-accountability; I don't really expect most of you to care what I plan to read and when. But if I tell you all when something will be posted, there's a much higher likelihood that it will actually get written on time. :)

• The Stranger by Max Frei - December 22
• Treasure Island!!! by Sara Levine - December 26 (library)
• Bloodsucking Fiends by Christopher Moore - December 31 (optimistically; might be rearranged depending on the effects of too much holiday punch on my ability to read before bed)
• Sweetly by Jackson Pearce - January 3 (library)
• Ghostopolis by Doug TenNapel - January 6 (library)
• The Godfather of Kathmandu by John Burdett - January 10
• Lonely Werewolf Girl by Martin Millar - January 13

I hope that those of you celebrating holidays over the next weeks celebrate them in good spirits. And as always, if you're reading anything interesting, drop me a comment and let me know. Especially heading into 2012; there are only so many books I can read before the end of the world. I want to make sure I prioritize. 

--emily

scheduling

Well, we're coming up on the end of the year here, and I'm going to try like the dickens to make sure I finish this list in time. This schedule thing is working out; I can't remember the last time I read six books in a month, unless you count the month I was reading the Lemony Snicket books. Anyway : a schedule.

• Green by Jay Lake   11/16


• Boneshaker by Cherie Priest   11/21


• ⇒ Crossed by Ally Condie - 11/26


• Embassytown by China Miéville   12/1


• ⇒ Sisters Red by Jackson Pearce - 12/3


• The Company Man by Robert Jackson Bennett   12/7


• The Stranger by Max Frei - 12/19


• Goliath by Scott Westerfeld - 12/31

Then, heading into the new year, I'm picking up a few more urban fantasies, as well as a straight mystery, because I'm obsessed with Burdett's Bangkok Detective series and I can't not snap that up as soon as I see it.

• Bloodsucking Fiends : A Love Story by Christopher Moore - 1/5


• The Godfather of Kathmandu by John Burdett - 1/10


• Lonely Werewolf Girl by Martin Millar - 1/17

I'd love some recommendations for what to add to the list, if any of you have read anything interesting lately and want to pass it along. Til next time! --emily