tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-56648192545139070702024-02-07T09:07:38.254-05:00Sweet Vernal ZephyrSuccinct Book Reviews<br>
(aka <a href="http://creatingmiranda.wordpress.com">Creating</a> & <a href="http://whithome.blogspot.com">Whit</a>)Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.comBlogger917125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-13935927524047077772015-06-30T02:22:00.000-04:002016-03-18T09:47:07.723-04:00Reviewing Guidelines<div style="text-align: center;">
<h1>
Hello & Welcome to <b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6600cc;">Sweet Vernal Zephyr Reviews</span></b></h1>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i></i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Breeze with me across the pages of fantasy and romance...</i></span></div>
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I AM NO LONGER REVIEWING but please enjoy my past reviews. SVZ 2014</blockquote>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Below is an outline of my current review format.</span></span></div>
<b></b><br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Please Note:</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> My reviews can appear slightly caustic, but take heart dear berated authors...</span></span></b><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">I only review books that stick with me! </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6600cc;"><--- This is a compliment. *wink*</span></span></i></span></b></div>
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<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6600cc;">Title & Author</span></b><br />
<br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6600cc;">Promotional blurb & Illustration</span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;">• with hyperlink</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6600cc;">Cover art critique</span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;">• As a graphic artist, I just can't leave the darn covers alone. <br />
• Some of them BEG for comment. <br />
• I also am aware that authors usually have very little control over cover art, so enjoy my snarky comments and smile.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6600cc;">Paranormality</span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;">• Listing by importance of paranormal elements throughout</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6600cc;">Era</span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;">• When paranormality is not relevant, usually in a historical</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6600cc;">Normality</span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;">• When paranormality is not relevant, usually in a contemporary</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6600cc;">Sexuality</span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;">• 'Cause a girl's gotta know what to expect!</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6600cc;">Audio Review</span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;">• Observations on the style of oration during an audiobook</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6600cc;">Review</span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;">• <b>Not a synopsis</b><br />
• Constructive criticism <b><-- b="" note.="" please=""><br />
• A review of outstanding points with limited spoilers</--></b></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6600cc;">Favorite Scene</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6600cc;">Various Excerpt Links</span></b></span>Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-67291800946602249632013-07-30T08:48:00.002-04:002013-07-30T08:48:59.819-04:00Droning audio, What I'm "reading"My work "book club" is active once again. It's not really a book club in the traditional sense, more like a book club on steroids. We work at a college and choose a book for incoming freshmen to read. So at any one time I am reading 3 books out of a selection of 35 being read throughout the group.<br />
<br />
Currently, I have <a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Shallows-Internet-Doing-Brains/dp/0393339750">The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to our Brains</a> by Nicholas Carr running on audiobook. This scientific theory on technology influencing our mental evolution is pretty darn informative but the backstory/corroborating evidence meanders for hours. If you are engaged in the subject, you willingly trip down those bunny trails, but a high school senior on summer break - no way. This non-fiction has a high skim probability.<br />
<br />
Also on my coffee table is the memoir <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Wild-Found-Pacific-Crest-Vintage/dp/0307476073/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1375188384&sr=1-1&keywords=wild">Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Trail</a> by Cheryl Stayed in hardback. Initial conversation in the group had me on the fence, but now that I am digging into the story I'm sure I will fly through it once I give myself a nice chunk of time to sit and read. It has the potential to be dark and dirty, but even though there is some underside of life stuff mentioned (sex, drugs, adultery, abortion), the focus is on the journey (so far) and her mental evolution. Still not sure the freshmen will love it but it's a maybe at the moment.<br />
<br />
Anyone else had a taste of these two books?Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-51769505447489303152013-07-23T11:30:00.001-04:002013-07-24T08:13:03.587-04:00Affliction • An Anita Blake Novel REVIEW<table align="left" style="margin-right: 15px; width: 300px;"><tbody>
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<b>BLURB:</b> It’s a typical day at work for Anita Blake, if your day job is raising the dead, and being a U. S. Marshal for the preternatural branch. One phone call changed everything. It was from the mother of one of her live-in boyfriends. Micah Callahan’s father was in the hospital and he was dying. Micah had been estranged from his family for years, but now, his mother wants Anita to bring the prodigal son home for a last good-bye.
<br />
<br />
Anita thinks it’s going to be a tearful trip down memory lane, until she learns that Sheriff Callahan was attacked on the job by a zombie. The bite is rotting him from the inside out, as if it’s turning him into a zombie while he’s still alive, but Anita knows zombies and they aren’t contagious. But something is killing Micah’s father, and he’s not the only victim. And there are the missing persons, far too many to explain away. While Micah deals with his family, Anita is pulled into a case so terrible she has to call for back up from friends and lovers that are no more human than the some of the monsters they’re hunting, and even that isn’t enough. Edward, Death himself, comes with badge and flamethrower to watch over his friend, Anita Blake, while she fights for her life and the lives of those she loves.</blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><b>Normality:</b> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Family crisis, Police, Relationships, Politics</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><b>Paranormality:</b> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Zombies, Vampires, Weres</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><b>Violence:</b> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Graphic Gore, Guns, Fire</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><b>Sexuality:</b> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">MF, MFM, MM kissing</span>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b><u>*A personal preface:</u></b> I'm an Anita Blake junkie. I've reread her series twice now and am planning on make a third round.
<br />
<br />
Initially, I was driven by my love of the characters. Then, I just felt a need to refresh the complicated mess of plot lines. Now, I kind just want to see what I've been missing - chart and graph style. That's right. I'm gonna tear this series apart.
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<br />
There are holes, lots of them. Kinda like real life, but I so don't like being left hanging. For years. </blockquote>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">This newest installment is pretty trendy with a heavy focus on zombies. For those of you not familiar with Anita, she's always played with zombies. That's her natural born talent. Luckily, zombies are hot right now.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Unfortunately, the cover is in synch with the rest of the latest redesign on her series and does nothing to draw in those new trendy readers. No gory blood, or rotting zombies chasing beautiful <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pulp_magazine">pulpy</a> girls.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">* Even though it has been well over a year since I've picked up Anita Blake and her paranormal harem, I was immediately weighted down by the glaring formula and repetitive backstory.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Hamilton has gotten a little better with her backstory, not quite smashing loyal readers over the head with it and integrating it into the current story more smoothly than in the past.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">* But the formulaic writing, ugg! You gotta have a plan. I totally understand that. But why can I see it? Perhaps, I'm not being drawn in by the little details. I've already heard them over and over again. They are part of the Anita-verse in my head.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">* And it's not just the backstory that's reptative. It's Anita! The same issues come up over and over again that have been solved over and over again. *sigh*</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I know this sounds like a rant, but only partially. I love Anita and the gang. And this round gets extremely gory and mushy. A large number of our key players are in action along with a few newbies that I have a feeling are going to be staying around.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">* But even with all the backstory, I was a little lost. If you are fan of the series, I advise re-reading Kiss the Dead first to give yourself a catch up on the inter-relationship stuff. It moves so fast!</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<b><u><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Go out and buy this hardcover, read it, and pass it on to your girl and guy friends. I know I am!</span></u></b><br />
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<i>* These comments are reflective of the series as a whole and not necessarily a heavy weight on this book as a stand alone, which it does very well.</i><br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/9CGzKvW4MYw" width="560"></iframe>Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-71712460169571147582013-06-21T12:48:00.002-04:002013-06-21T12:48:43.645-04:00OverDrive Library Android AppI just borrowed an <b>audiobook</b> from my library. But it's not quite that easy for the first time...<br />
<br />
Its an MP3 file through OverDrive.<br />
<br />
So I downloaded the OverDrive Android App.<br />
<br />
Located my library.<br />
<br />
Signed in with my library card.<br />
<br />
And downloaded my audio book.<br />
<br />
Except it was in 6 parts and blew up my data plan! OOPS, gotta find the wifi download only setting. *cringe*<br />
<br />
I've got 7 days to listen to the book. Feels like a tight deadline, and I've already used up a couple of those days figuring out HOW to get the file...<br />
<br />
I'll keep you posted.Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-18266149937160818772013-06-07T12:06:00.000-04:002013-06-07T12:06:03.623-04:00Friday 56 • Programmed for Pleasure by Jenna Ives<b style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #820bbb;">FRIDAY 56</span></b><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"><br />"I suggest you try the sex toys on her today, Callex."</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;">...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;">"The sex toys," Carron repeated. "The Doll is programmed to respond well to them. This might be your last chance to try them. Tomorrow your week here is up."</span><br />
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<b style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #820bbb;">Read my review!</span></b><br />
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<tr><td><a href="http://www.jennaives.com/"><img src="http://www.jennaives.com/images/281_ProgrammedForPleasureFINAL.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
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<h1>
Programmed for Pleasure</h1>
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Tau Cetus police agent Jai Turner is being sent undercover as a Beautiful Dolls sex robot in order to bring down the planet's most notorious arms dealer, Marque Callex...</span></span></blockquote>
Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-45863740893728043052013-06-06T15:51:00.003-04:002013-06-06T15:51:38.951-04:00Programmed for Pleasure • REVIEW<center>
<span style="font-size: medium;">Faux Robot Sex = No guilt, right?</span></center>
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<tr><td><a href="http://www.jennaives.com/"><img src="http://www.jennaives.com/images/281_ProgrammedForPleasureFINAL.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
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<h1>
Programmed for Pleasure</h1>
<span style="font-size: medium;">by Jenna Ives<br />
<br />
<i>152 Page ebook, February 2013</i><br />
<br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Tau Cetus police agent Jai Turner is being sent undercover as a Beautiful Dolls sex robot in order to bring down the planet's most notorious arms dealer, Marque Callex. The police have never been able to get close to Callex, and Jai’s assignment is to use her sexual skills to satisfy Marque, and to coax information out of him on his illicit dealings – information that will lead to his conviction.<br /><br />Notoriously reclusive arms dealer Marque Callex only accepted an invitation from Beautiful Dolls because he needs a little stress relief. With his deadly line of work – and the dangerous secrets he’s keeping – he rarely lets anyone into his life. That’s why a week of free, no-commitment, no-holds-barred sex – in return for giving Beautiful Dolls owner Anson Carron feedback on how his newest model of sexbot performs – is perfect for him.<br /><br />But neither Jai nor Marque are what they seem, and their week together has consequences neither expected.</span></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: medium;">My review guidelines can be found <a href="http://sweetvernalzephyr.blogspot.com/2009/08/randis-ravin-reviews.html">HERE. </a></span><br />
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<b style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #820bbb;">SEXUALITY</span></b><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"><br />
• Hetero, Masturbation, Undercover sex, Anal<br />
</span><br />
<br />
<b style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #820bbb;">REVIEW </span></b><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span>
<div style="font-size: medium; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: medium;">• Started off a little slow, robotic almost. </span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: medium;">• The premise really drew me in. How can a person pretend to be a robot and reconcile/excuse all those very human things we do? The anticipation kept me reading!<br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: medium;">• Could easily have seen this fleshed out into a full length story. I was eager to hear more of the emotional details this interaction between human and faux robot would have stimulated. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: medium;">• Quick and fun, you won't blush too hard during the sex scenes and you won't get dragged into the emotional mire of long dramatic relationships. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span>
<b style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #820bbb;">PERSONAL LURES </span></b><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"><br />
• I love robots.<br />
</span><br />
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<b style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #820bbb;">WANT MORE? </span></b><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Check out <a href="http://www.jennaives.com/">Jenna Ives' website here</a>.</span><br />
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<tr><td><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxDOYEzE-qAysSS3uXaQJ893rbeC1EvuctH9V6zop5iJmq0Le3kTrvVLOBbRS6PJk1nUy4bzczeBV1hQqcmM9RA4KUhi7HZnv5ENaCmQkHWS_2Omr1CERx54QHqvxLx1UB7qARnMQY5q8f/s800/SVZ2.jpg" /></td></tr>
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Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-48715442791962721132013-04-24T12:02:00.003-04:002013-04-24T12:02:55.308-04:00Men Who Wish to Drown • FREE READ<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">My subscription to Commercial Arts Magazine included this beautiful mermaid illustration in the most recent Illustration Annual. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
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<tr><td><a href="http://www.tor.com/galleries/anna-elena-balbusso#thumbs"><img src="http://www.tor.com/images/stories/stories/Fama/full_menwishtodrown.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
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Illustration by ANNA & ELENA BALBUSSO
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<a href="http://www.tor.com/images/stories/stories/Fama/full_menwishtodrown.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">It links to a fascinating free read at Tor. Elizabeth Fama takes you on a very short journey through memory and life, and most importantly regrets. I loved it and think you will too. At the very least it will make you think about your choices. Are you playing it safe and not really living?</span><br />
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<h3>
<a href="http://www.tor.com/stories/2012/08/men-who-wish-to-drown"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Men Who Wish To Drown by Elizabeth Fama</span></a></h3>
Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-34355388007718930352013-03-14T09:57:00.000-04:002013-03-14T09:57:22.855-04:00Soulless, The Parasol Protectorate 1 • REVIEW<center>
<span style="font-size: medium;">Funny, just a little bit sexy, and scientifically intriguing - Paranormal romance with steam!</span></center>
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<blockquote>
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<h1>
Souless</h1>
<span style="font-size: medium;">by Gail Carriger<br />
<i><br /></i>
<b>The Parasol Protectorate, Book 1 </b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Alexia Tarabotti is laboring under a great many social tribulations. First, she has no soul. Second, she's a spinster whose father is both Italian and dead. Third, she was rudely attacked by a vampire, breaking all standards of social etiquette.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Where to go from there? From bad to worse apparently, for Alexia accidentally kills the vampire -- and then the appalling Lord Maccon (loud, messy, gorgeous, and werewolf) is sent by Queen Victoria to investigate.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">With unexpected vampires appearing and expected vampires disappearing, everyone seems to believe Alexia responsible. Can she figure out what is actually happening to London's high society? Will her soulless ability to negate supernatural powers prove useful or just plain embarrassing? Finally, who is the real enemy, and do they have treacle tart?</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">SOULLESS is a comedy of manners set in Victorian London: full of werewolves, vampires, dirigibles, and tea-drinking.</span></blockquote>
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<b style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #820bbb;">PARANORMALITY</span></b><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"><br />
• Werewolves & Vampires, Socially Integrated<br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">• Ghosts, Soulless, Evil Scientists</span><br />
<br />
<b style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #820bbb;">SEXUALITY </span></b><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"><br />
• Some steamy encounters (pun intended!) with moderate language. Explicit but in no way vulgar.<br />
</span><br />
<br />
<b style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #820bbb;">REVIEW </span></b><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"><br />
• Another book I caught myself thinking about when I wasn't reading it. The dynamic between Alexia and Lord Maccon plays in your head, not-so-subtle barbs, hot indecipherable looks, compromising positions!<br />
</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: medium;">• Steampunk creations stimulate that scientific part of my mind, giving me another reason to contemplate the characters when I was away from them.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: medium;">• Alexia's tone is so... perfectly distant and assessing. As if she believes she is simply a shell but it is quite obvious she is a whole person despite the supposed state of her soul. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: medium;">• Pick this one up and indulge in a strong willed, smart and capable woman ready to accept every challenge in her life and investigate it to the fullest extent. </span><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #820bbb; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span>
<br />
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<tr><td><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxDOYEzE-qAysSS3uXaQJ893rbeC1EvuctH9V6zop5iJmq0Le3kTrvVLOBbRS6PJk1nUy4bzczeBV1hQqcmM9RA4KUhi7HZnv5ENaCmQkHWS_2Omr1CERx54QHqvxLx1UB7qARnMQY5q8f/s800/SVZ2.jpg" /></td></tr>
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Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-31765279243192891332013-03-06T10:45:00.002-05:002013-03-06T11:51:06.099-05:00Daughter of Smoke and Bone • Review<a href="http://www.lainitaylor.com/p/books.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Daughter of Smoke and Bone Triology by Laini Taylor</span></a><br />
<br />
<table align="center" style="width: 424px;"><tbody>
<tr><td><img src="http://media.npr.org/assets/bakertaylor/covers/d/daughter-of-smoke-bone/9780316133999_custom-79e955bb2d80e3f75be72ece160476dc09b34588-s6-c10.jpg" /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<h2>
</h2>
<h2>
Review of Books I & II:</h2>
<h2>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Daughter of Smoke and Bone & </span></h2>
<h2>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Days of Blood and Starlight</span></h2>
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">While reading one of my magazine subscriptions (Inc., Wired, or Fast Co.), and article about ebook longevity suggested "The Daughter of Smoke and Bone" was setting up to be the next Twilight craze.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">So, naturally, I bought it just to see. That's the "indie" peaking out, wanting to be ahead of the curve. Ha!</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Unfortunately, my local independent bookstore didn't have it and couldn't order it (I don't understand the specifics. Something about being a foreign publishing company.) But I did find it easily enough on Amazon and used the purchase as an excuse to fill up my cart with a few other books I had been eyeballing.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Once I finally got my hands on it, I was pleasantly surprised. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Though straddling the YA category, this novel is a bit too "erotic" for the preteen set. I offered it to a friend for story time with her 12 year old. She did a pre-read and just wasn't comfortable with the level of heat in the pages, and didn't want to explain feeling "hot and bothered" to her daughter. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I, on the other hand, always want YA to take that last step into the "act". But this story was full enough with plot and character development that the strain of absent sex didn't chafe as much as usual.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">There are many fairytale elements in this story of monsters and angels: blue hair, necklaces full of wishes, high school in Prague. But shadows darken the edges with mysterious and dangerous errands, secrets, and possible death.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Once enamored with the characters, I moved on to the second book "Days of Blood and Starlight" which throws off the sparkle of fairytales and embraces the dark reality of greed, vengeance, and war. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Friends become enemies and enemies pretend to be friends. I had difficulty in the middle of the book, screaming at the protagonist to see the lies! It wore me down a bit, that she had no clue. But there are plenty other levels of suspense to keep you engaged.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Including waiting for the final book in the trilogy to be released! "The expected pub date is April, 2014." </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I give the Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy a thumbs up!</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-58215577406545967802013-02-02T11:16:00.003-05:002013-02-02T11:17:15.206-05:00The Breeders • Wrap Up Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.matthewbeier.com/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.matthewbeier.com/images/books.jpg" width="1100" /></a></div>
<br />
<blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">"Matthew Beier’s debut novel tells the intimate story of two people bound by the force of life itself as they set out to protect their unborn child and find value for themselves in a world that has rendered them worthless. This rainbow-tinted reflection of our own society--part political satire and part dystopian thriller--is a novel you won’t want to miss."</span></blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">
Chapter one sucked me in.
The writing is smooth. The story intriguing. The alternative viewpoint makes you wonder. I can feel her fear, her confusion. Though it was so dramatically intense and laden with possibilities that I opted not to take it to the couch with me for my even unwind - because I was relatively sure it would not be a relaxing read. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I'm struggling to understand why I'm struggling to progress through the first few chapters of this book.
My trepidation stems from reading about a parent that has prejudices so strong they undermine their love for their child.
That was never love, but simply love for the idea of a child. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">This dystopian novel turns social norms on their head for an interpretation of dictatorship that simply pretends at democracy as the leaders in power push through their ideals and destroy all dissenters. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Well written with a juggling point of view, each chapter switches from Him to Her with occasional flashbacks to add backstory.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I had trouble reading it consistently only because of the premonition of horrible things. If character development had been a little bit stronger, I suspect I would not have been able to put it down.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Be prepared to be appalled and horrified while slightly hopeful. Highly recommend reading with an OPEN MINDED reading group as there are a TON of talking points relating to politics, sexuality, morality, and family.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">If you love dystopians and have an open mind, this is for you. Happy reading! </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">~ Miranda</span>Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-50688772628674059842013-01-18T13:07:00.001-05:002013-01-18T13:07:15.905-05:00The Breeders in relation to NYS gun laws<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.matthewbeier.com/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.matthewbeier.com/images/books.jpg" width="1100" /></a></div>
<br />
<blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">"Matthew Beier’s debut novel tells the intimate story of two people bound by the force of life itself as they set out to protect their unborn child and find value for themselves in a world that has rendered them worthless. This rainbow-tinted reflection of our own society--part political satire and part dystopian thriller--is a novel you won’t want to miss."</span></blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">See <a href="http://sweetvernalzephyr.blogspot.com/2012/12/the-breeders-review-in-progress.html">my first impressions in Review I</a>:</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br />The recent NYS Gun Law that was passed under cover of darkness makes me nervous. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">This story is just an exploration of that kind of power in the future! No longer are decisions made for the good of "the people" but "a person" in power. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The further I progress in the story, the more I will update you. Happy reading! </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">~ Miranda</span>Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-77888410189606547942013-01-08T12:56:00.001-05:002013-01-08T12:56:47.770-05:00The Breeders • In Progress Review II<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.matthewbeier.com/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.matthewbeier.com/images/books.jpg" width="1100" /></a></div>
<br />
<blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">"Matthew Beier’s debut novel tells the intimate story of two people bound by the force of life itself as they set out to protect their unborn child and find value for themselves in a world that has rendered them worthless. This rainbow-tinted reflection of our own society--part political satire and part dystopian thriller--is a novel you won’t want to miss."</span></blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">See <a href="http://sweetvernalzephyr.blogspot.com/2012/12/the-breeders-review-in-progress.html">my first impressions in Review I</a>:</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">I'm struggling to understand why I'm struggling to progress through the first few chapters of this book.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">My trepidation stems from reading about a parent that has prejudices so strong they undermine their love for their child. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">That was never love, but simply love for the <i>idea </i>of a child. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">But I will push on in small bursts....</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The further I progress in the story, the more I will update you. Happy reading! </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">~ Miranda</span>Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-9172525070388295032012-12-03T12:36:00.000-05:002012-12-03T12:36:03.242-05:00The Breeders - Review in Progress<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.matthewbeier.com/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0"src="http://www.matthewbeier.com/images/books.jpg" width="1100" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">My review copy of <a href="http://www.matthewbeier.com/books.html">The Breeders by Matthew J. Beier</a> arrived in the mail last week. I've left it out in plain sight for my friends to peruse without pressure. But now I am taking my turn.
</span><br />
<blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">"Matthew Beier’s debut novel tells the intimate story of two people bound by the force of life itself as they set out to protect their unborn child and find value for themselves in a world that has rendered them worthless. This rainbow-tinted reflection of our own society--part political satire and part dystopian thriller--is a novel you won’t want to miss."</span></blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Chapter one sucked me in. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The writing is smooth. The story intriguing. The alternative viewpoint makes you wonder. I can feel her fear, her confusion. Though it was so dramatically intense and laden with possibilities that I opted not to take it to the couch with me for my even unwind - because I was relatively sure it would not be a relaxing read. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I have since devoured chapter two and three during little snippets of time. I admit to being afraid of sitting down with this book. My full attention may just engage me to the point of abandoning all else until I've turned the last page! </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The further I progress in the story, the more I will update you. Happy reading! </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">~ Miranda</span>Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-80173427911834732902012-11-15T11:23:00.002-05:002012-11-15T11:26:13.235-05:00Skyfall • 007 James Bond<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Saw the new<a href="http://www.007.com/"> James Bond movie</a> last night. Hot women and lots of chasing/killing action.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">But a few key things are missing...</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Gadgets & Puns.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">And it could have used a little bit more steam... and plot.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Oh, well. I'll still go to the next one. And the next one. Because its a tradition with my Dad. :)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/gzpixGFf4j4" width="560"></iframe></span>Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-42388073200077520892012-11-15T10:48:00.000-05:002012-11-15T11:30:25.166-05:00Breaking Dawn 2 • Midnight Showing<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.breakingdawn-themovie.com/">Breaking Dawn Part 2 -</a> Yup. I'm going. In fact, I have gone to every single midnight showing of each movie in this series. That will make tonight number 5. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">But here is the strange thing. There has been a time warp this year and midnight is occurring at 10pm.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">*silence*</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><b>I'm disappointed that we, as a society, have let fear dictate our actions. </b>*</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Evil people exist every hour of the day. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Moving the movie up 2 hours doesn't make them magically disappear into the shadows of pre-dawn. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Perhaps the production studios think they will get more sales.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">But perhaps we will be infiltrated with the only slightly infatuated fangirls... </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I am afraid that tonight will be stripped of the usual elation a midnight showing includes. "Ooo"s and "Ahhh"s at the screen. Burst of laughter and tense anticipation from the enraptured audience. The energy in that theatre is the reason I go! </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Time will tell. I'm still going to have fun with my girl friends as we act way younger than our ages tonight!</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><b>If you have any more information about the mysterious 10pm Midnight showings, please share it in the comments. </b></span><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">* The recent Colorado shooting occurred during a midnight showing of The Dark Knight Rises.</span>
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/bUXjqQ4GKRg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-14988571718550939022012-09-27T13:45:00.000-04:002012-09-27T14:32:03.162-04:00The Cure by MC Foley<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><i>Brutal, dirty and straight from the mouth of that little devil on your shoulder.</i></span><br />
<br />
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMwcRThFs604wsuAbEPESQKC19kVWjIV9B4PTs1WG805MEEOgCsig3xv-1E4zAh9LntTo0AWk5WikV1jMb9PbDr83fEI4f23sK4c6MbeB_vkbKIbeAzDDoe-csovk4eJM4BGdFL2Xsi-l3/s320/IMAG0250.jpg" /><br />
<table></table>
<h2>
The Cure by MC Foley</h2>
<blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Los Angeles. 2012. After a beaten-down, sickly cog visits a faith healer, she develops a dark wish fulfillment power that stokes her appetite for sex and vigilante-style revenge.
<br />
"The illness, the one that almost killed me, or almost killed my soul, was also the thing that brought me here. A new home in my City of Angels. Heads on stakes. Enemies impaled. All of this revenge surrounding what used to elude me - Power. Until now. One visit to the bird streets and everything changed. They say absolute power corrupts. Absolutely. Yes, it does."
<br />
Splashes of dark humor. Adults only.</span></blockquote>
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Cure-lips-cover-ebook/dp/B008ENPD0M/ref=pd_sim_sbs_kstore_1">Kindle edition available</a> or you can <a href="https://www.facebook.com/TheCureBookSeries">Follow the fans on Facebook</a><br />
<br />
<br />
<h2>
My Review</h2>
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">This quick read is sure to grab your attention and DRAG you into the darkness. Beware the increased leverage that devil on your shoulder will have for the duration of this story.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Savage violence paired with disreputable sex made me cringe at work, prompting me to hide in my car while reading on my lunch break. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><i>"Through the wall, I can hear quiet moaning, a bit of gurgling and heaving, choking and spitting up. This continues for a few minutes and, as it does, I feel polar emotions of anxiety and thrill. The anxiety, however, quickly passes. In my gut, I know I forced it there. Because the truth is... "</i></span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>pg 112</i></span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">This is just the beginning, easily a set up for a series. I encourage you to embrace this dirty indulgence just in time for <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;"><b>Halloween</b></span>!</span>Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-44376428242260943492012-09-24T12:21:00.000-04:002012-09-24T12:21:00.568-04:00Realistic Fantasy Sex<h3>
Ever get jarred out of a romance novel because your brain is screaming, "NO F'ING WAY!"</h3>
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Specifically with depictions of sex:</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><i>• No lube for anal penetration</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><i>• Removal of nipple clamps without resulting pain</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><i>• Excessive ejaculation during a limited time span</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><i>• Repetitive orgasm during a limited time span (OK, so this IS fantasy)</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><i>• Morning kisses</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I am not talking about Paranormal scenarios, either.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<h3>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">What totally ruins the mood for you?</span></h3>
Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-63625078633626513602012-09-20T10:36:00.000-04:002012-09-20T10:36:00.282-04:00Escape from Camp 14 • Non-fiction Review<table><img src="http://media.oregonlive.com/books_impact/photo/10778499-large.jpg"></table>
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<h2>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 19px;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Escape-Camp-14-Remarkable-Odyssey/dp/0670023329">Escape from Camp 14</a></span></h2>
<h2>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">by Blaine Harden</span></i></span></h2>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>A <i>New York Times </i>bestseller, the shocking story of one of the few people born in a North Korean political prison to have escaped and survived.</b>
<br>
<b></b>North Korea is isolated and hungry, bankrupt and belligerent. It is also armed with nuclear weapons. Between 150,000 and 200,000 people are being held in its political prison camps, which have existed twice as long as Stalin's Soviet gulags and twelve times as long as the Nazi concentration camps. Very few born and raised in these camps have escaped. But Shin Donghyuk did.
<br>
In <i>Escape from Camp 14</i>, acclaimed journalist Blaine Harden tells the story of Shin Dong-hyuk and through the lens of Shin's life unlocks the secrets of the world's most repressive totalitarian state. Shin knew nothing of civilized existence-he saw his mother as a competitor for food, guards raised him to be a snitch, and he witnessed the execution of his own family. Through Harden's harrowing narrative of Shin's life and remarkable escape, he offers an unequaled inside account of one of the world's darkest nations and a riveting tale of endurance, courage, and survival.</blockquote>
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<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Very rarely will you see a non-fiction review on my site. It's not because I shun the genre, it just generally can not hold my attention.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Sadly enough, some passages in this book read like... fiction.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The horrific descriptions of life and death will be certain to give you nightmares simply because they are truth. You can't lie to yourself and say a delightfully twisted mind created these dark scenarios to set the backdrop for a knight in shining armour. These twisted minds are evil and wielding the tiny bit of power they have to make those weaker than them suffer.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">But I digress.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Blaine Harden narrates the story of Shin. A unique case of a North Korean born in a prison camp and raised according to the "rules". Snitching, death, hunger, and toil were all the norm for Shin, until he heard of the outside world. Innocent of brainwashing (he was not important enough, just an animal) and ignorant of geography, history, culture, and luxury - his motivating force was food (make's sense, he was constantly starving.)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">This is a true ONGOING story. Read it, even though it is hard. And share it. </span>Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-5040851718140391832012-09-17T10:30:00.006-04:002012-09-17T10:30:52.712-04:00Coming Soon! The Cure by MC Foley<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I just received a shiny new paperback in Saturday's mail! And I'm already reading :)</span></i><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMwcRThFs604wsuAbEPESQKC19kVWjIV9B4PTs1WG805MEEOgCsig3xv-1E4zAh9LntTo0AWk5WikV1jMb9PbDr83fEI4f23sK4c6MbeB_vkbKIbeAzDDoe-csovk4eJM4BGdFL2Xsi-l3/s1600/IMAG0250.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMwcRThFs604wsuAbEPESQKC19kVWjIV9B4PTs1WG805MEEOgCsig3xv-1E4zAh9LntTo0AWk5WikV1jMb9PbDr83fEI4f23sK4c6MbeB_vkbKIbeAzDDoe-csovk4eJM4BGdFL2Xsi-l3/s320/IMAG0250.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<h2>
The Cure by MC Foley</h2>
<blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Los Angeles. 2012. After a beaten-down, sickly cog visits a faith healer, she develops a dark wish fulfillment power that stokes her appetite for sex and vigilante-style revenge.</span> </blockquote>
<blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">"The illness, the one that almost killed me, or almost killed my soul, was also the thing that brought me here. A new home in my City of Angels. Heads on stakes. Enemies impaled. All of this revenge surrounding what used to elude me - Power. Until now. One visit to the bird streets and everything changed. They say absolute power corrupts. Absolutely. Yes, it does."</span> </blockquote>
<blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Splashes of dark humor. Adults only.</span></blockquote>
<br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Cure-lips-cover-ebook/dp/B008ENPD0M/ref=pd_sim_sbs_kstore_1">Kindle edition available</a> or you can <a href="https://www.facebook.com/TheCureBookSeries">Follow the fans on Facebook</a>Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-17181501459902562542012-08-29T09:03:00.001-04:002012-08-29T09:03:29.774-04:00The Artist's Inheritance - New Release<table align="center" style="width: 500px;"><tbody>
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<h3>
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Artists-Inheritance-Antique-Magic-ebook/dp/B008XL82IU/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1345040600&sr=1-1"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">The Artist's Inheritance </span></a></h3>
<div>
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">by Juli D. Revezzo</span></i></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; color: #454545; font-family: arial;"><span id="yui_3_2_0_4_1346155768582911">Settling into their new home in Gulf Breeze, Florida, </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; color: #454545; font-family: arial;">Caitlin finds strange changes coming over her husband Trevor. He seems obsessed with a beautiful chair he’s carving.</span><br />
<div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; color: #454545; font-family: arial;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; color: #454545; font-family: arial;">When the nightmares deepen and ghosts begin lurking—she knows something’s not right, and not just her newfound precognitive abilities. It’s the damned chair, she’s sure. Could it be just what it seems: a mundane piece of furniture? If so, why is it attracting dark forces—the forces she suspects drove Trevor’s siblings to insanity and suicide?</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; color: #454545; font-family: arial;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; color: #454545; font-family: arial;">Before the same happens to Trevor, Caitlin must convince him to sell his art. But armed with only a handful of allies, and little experience of the supernatural, she must proceed with caution against the hellish forces besieging her family. If she succeeds, she will break the ancestral curse. If she fails, she may lose forever the one thing she cares about most: her beloved Trevor.</span></div>
</blockquote>
<br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I prompted Ms. Revezzo to give us a funny tidbit about the haunted chair idea, "Where did it come from?": <br /><br /><i>Oh, I don't know if it's funny, really. I was thinking on the idea of the artist, and didn't want to do another painter-writer-whatever character that had been done so many times before. Sculptor was even a bit done, so I picked a woodcarver.<br /><br />The haunting came up in a later draft when I had to explain why he was so obsessed with his work (and he is obsessed, working until he can't stand up or see straight-obsessed).<br /><br />So, what if, I thought, his sister and brother had suffered the same affliction? What if it's a curse? What's so weird about this chair that the artist's wife gets squicky whenever she looks at it, when his other creations never bothered her? Why is she suddenly having ghostly communications from a long-dead Civil War soldier, strange visions of her dead sister-in-law, and nightmares about the chair?<br /><br />It all seemed tied back to that thing (the chair) her hubby's working on in her attic. ;)</i><br /><br /><br />Thanks so much to Ms. Revezzo for giving us a sneek peek into the creation of The Artist's Inheritance. If you want to take a longer look (read it cover to cover!), it is <a href="http://tinyurl.com/8w8ao9e">currently available in kindle format on Amazon</a>.</span>Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-79002752720607395832012-08-07T10:52:00.002-04:002012-08-07T10:52:55.776-04:00Thank You For The Light<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Below is a lost F. Scott Fitzgerald short story. Rejected from the The New Yorker in 1936, it was published for the first time yesterday. Thank you, <a href="http://www.bookofjoe.com/2012/08/thank-you-for-the-light-f-scott-fitzgerald-1936-2012.html">book of joe</a>, for the heads up.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">"Oddly, the era most vividly evoked by the story is our own, where smoking (except in certain neighborhoods downtown and in Brooklyn) is something one does guiltily and on the sly, the butt cupped behind an ashamed hand. The difference is that, unlike Mrs. Hanson, you can’t sneak indoors anywhere, not even into a bar, let alone a church. The street is your only option." ~ <a href="http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/07/31/a-fantastic-fitzgerald-story-resurrected-in-the-new-yorker/">Charles McGrath</a></span></blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">_________________________________________</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Thank You For The Light</span></b><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Mrs. Hanson was a pretty, somewhat faded woman of forty, who sold corsets and girdles, travelling out of Chicago. For many years her territory had swung around through Toledo, Lima, Springfield, Columbus, Indianapolis, and Fort Wayne, and her transfer to the Iowa-Kansas-Missouri district was a promotion, for her firm was more strongly entrenched west of the Ohio.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Eastward, she had known her clientele chattily and had often been offered a drink or a cigarette in the buyer’s office after business was concluded. But she soon found that in her new district things were different. Not only was she never asked if she would like to smoke but several times her own inquiry as to whether anyone would mind was answered half apologetically with “It’s not that I mind, but it has a bad influence on the employees.”</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">“Oh, of course, I understand.”</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Smoking meant a lot to her sometimes. She worked very hard and it had some ability to rest and relax her psychologically. She was a widow and she had no close relatives to write to in the evenings, and more than one moving picture a week hurt her eyes, so smoking had come to be an important punctuation mark in the long sentence of a day on the road.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The last week of her first trip on the new circuit found her in Kansas City. It was mid-August and she felt somewhat lonely among all her new contacts, so she was delighted to find at the outer desk of one firm a woman she had known in Chicago. She sat down before having herself announced and in the course of the conversation found out a little about the man she was going to see.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">“Will he mind if I smoke?”</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">“What? My God, yes!” her friend said. “He’s given money to support the law against it.”</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">“Oh. Well, I’m grateful for the advice—more than grateful.”</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">“You better watch it everywhere around here,” her friend said. “Especially with the men over fifty. The ones who weren’t in the war. A man told me that nobody who was in the war would ever object to anyone smoking.”</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">... [<a href="http://www.newyorker.com/fiction/features/2012/08/06/120806fi_fiction_fitzgerald?currentPage=1">Read the full story at The New York Times</a>] ...</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">She hadn’t smoked since breakfast and she suddenly realized that that was why she felt a vague dissatisfaction at the end of each call, no matter how successful it had been in a business way.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">She would say, “We think we cover a different field. It’s all rubber and canvas, of course, but we do manage to put them together in a different way. A thirty-per-cent increase in national advertising in one year tells its own story.”</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">And to herself she was thinking, If I could just get three puffs I could sell old-fashioned whalebone.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">She had one more store to visit now but her appointment was not for half an hour. That was just time to go to her hotel but, as there was no taxi in sight, she walked along the street, thinking, Perhaps I ought to give up cigarettes. I’m getting to be a drug fiend.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Before her, she saw the Catholic cathedral. It seemed very tall, and suddenly she had an inspiration: if so much incense had gone up in the spires to God, a little smoke in the vestibule would make no difference. How could the Good Lord care if a tired woman took a few puffs in the vestibule?</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Nevertheless, though she was not a Catholic, the thought offended her. Was it so important that she have her cigarette, when it might offend a lot of other people, too?</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Still. He wouldn’t mind, she thought persistently. In His days, they hadn’t even discovered tobacco. . . .</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">She went into the church; the vestibule was dark, and she felt for a match in the bag she carried but there weren’t any.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I’ll go and get a light from one of their candles, she thought.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The darkness of the nave was broken only by a splash of light in one corner. She walked up the aisle toward the white blur, and found that it was not made by candles and, in any case, it was about to go out—an old man was on the point of extinguishing a last oil lamp.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">“These are votive offerings,” he said. “We put them out at night. We think it means more to the people who give them to save them for next day than it would to keep them burning all night.”</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">“I see.”</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">He struck out the last one. There was no light left in the cathedral now, save an electric chandelier high overhead and the ever-burning lamp in front of the Sacrament.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">“Good night,” the sexton said.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">“Good night.”</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">“I guess you came here to pray.”</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">“Yes, I did.”</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">He went out into the sacristy. Mrs. Hanson knelt down and prayed.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">It had been a long time since she had prayed. She scarcely knew what to pray for, so she prayed for her employer, and for the clients in Des Moines and Kansas City. When she had finished praying, she knelt up. An image of the Madonna gazed down upon her from a niche, six feet above her head.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Vaguely she regarded it. Then she got up from her knees and sank back wearily in the corner of the pew. In her imagination, the Virgin came down, like in the play “The Miracle,” and took her place and sold corsets and girdles for her and was tired, just as she was. Then for a few minutes Mrs. Hanson must have slept.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">She awoke at the realization that something had changed, and gradually she perceived that there was a familiar scent that was not incense in the air and that her fingers smarted. Then she realized that the cigarette she held in her hand was alight—was burning.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Still too drowsy to think, she took a puff to keep the flame alive. Then she looked up at the Madonna’s vague niche in the half-darkness.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">“Thank you for the light,” she said.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">That didn’t seem quite enough, so she got down on her knees, the smoke twisting up from the cigarette between her fingers.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">“Thank you very much for the light,” she said.</span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">~ F. Scott Fitzgerald, 1936</span></i></div>Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-46611935151931559272012-08-01T08:40:00.003-04:002012-08-01T08:40:45.237-04:00Oldie but Goodie - Count de Monte CristoThis book is (was? I better check!) sitting on my shelf waiting for me to clear off a good chunk of a month to read it. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Count_of_Monte_Cristo"><b>The Count de Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas</b></a><br />
<br />
This article, <a href="http://christinalay.wordpress.com/2012/07/29/the-agony-of-empathy/">Agony of Empathy,</a> might just raise it a few more steps up the stacks on my TBR pile!<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
...although the heft of it makes my wrists tremble, I read anxiously and stay up late and resent any and all intrusions. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Why is this torture device disguised as a book such a time-honored classic? I quake with sympathy for the original readers who had to read this in serial form, waiting in suspense for each new installment, unaware of the conclusion.
</blockquote>
<br />
Thanks, Christina Lay, for prodding me to take the time and read some books for leisure once in a while.Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-18916674343460839822012-07-02T08:56:00.000-04:002012-07-02T08:56:00.305-04:00An Unread Classic<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I'm constantly surfing around the internet keeping my graphic designer eyes "FRESH" and "NEW".</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">In my relentless travels I stumbled across a new book jacket for an old classic that I have never read. That's not a surprise. Classics don't usually hold my interest. But this one is written in stream of consciousness and sounds worth a trip to the library at least.</span><br />
<br />
<h2>
As I Lay Dying by Faulkner</h2>
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<tr><td><a href="http://www.underconsideration.com/fpo/archives/2012/02/as-i-lay-dying-book-jacket.php"><img src="http://www.underconsideration.com/fpo/project_images/asilaydying_01.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
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<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">New cover design as seen on FPO.</span>Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-26470126443818843032012-06-25T11:52:00.000-04:002012-07-02T11:37:35.563-04:00The Child Thief by Brom • Review<h3>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">The Child Thief by Brom</span></h3>
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<tr><td><a href="http://www.bromart.com/childthief.html"><img src="http://www.bromart.com/images/CT%20Cover%20Web%20large2.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
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<h4>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Judging a book by its cover is one of my favorite ways to rebel.</span></h4>
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">This glorious hardcover ended up in my Amazon basket just because of that (and I needed X more dollars to get free shipping - a contradiction, I know.) I have quite a few impulse buys from the same affect. This one panned out.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">This reinvention of Peter Pan is not for children and Brom makes that extremely apparent in the very first pages. You open onto a scene of incestual child rape. Bam, this is not a fairy tale. The filth is pretty thick initially, but once the stage is set for the "lost children" the spinning ninja kicks to your psyche tapper off.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I have to admit, I have not read the original Peter Pan - only watched the Disney movie and Hook. The similarities are there, but vague. Wendy isn't mentioned until half way through, and then only in a passing flashback.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">This story has a life of its own, dark and deceptively hopeless. Many commentaries can be supposed that relate directly back to the original: the magic of childrens' wonderment and naivety - the horror of current lifestyles to conquer/defeat/kill all things unknown or unacceptable to their narrow minds - the plea to preserve the harmony and beauty of nature.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Flashbacks are used quite prolifically to tell the story of Peter's first journey into the mist. The method is sound, but I found myself confusing Peter and Nick (the newest initiate). Perhaps that is just tribute to the frailty of my mind, because I really enjoy this rediscovery of a story. Looking for any links to the sparkling fairy dust version of my childhood.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Nick's internal battle is a good foil for my struggle to transition from a child to an adult and not become dull, average, boring... not to loose the joy of living. Playing mental games so that work is a challenge and even bloody battles to the death are just an obstacle corse that must be completed to win the game.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The creatures created are so fascinating, I want to see MORE illustrations from Brom. A wordless, purely illustrated version of this story would be divine.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Sprites: Tiny dragonfly sized creatures of varying colors and extreme trouble makers. The children sleep in cages just to protect themselves from all the pranks!</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Spiders: Large disgusting scary creatures living in the bottom of the outhouse and obviously hungry for anything.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Three girls: Appearing pure, sweet and innocent but children of the swamp goddess. </span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">"Time to go see Auntie," said the first.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">"I hope she has cake," put in the second.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">"I hope she has bunnies," said the third. "I like bunnies."</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">"Bunnies, yum," said the first. "I'll have two."</span></blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The ending is very open and consistently dark. I especially enjoyed the interactions of fairy and NYC. (To say more would be to give it away.) Peter flirts with mental epiphany for his past actions but ultimately returning to the his devious ways.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">After all is said and done, Brom gives a lovely explanation of his muse including the original Peter Pan and the myths behind it.</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The boys on the island vary, of course, in numbers, according as they get killed and so on; and when they seem to be growing up, which is against the rules, <b>Peter thins them out.</b></span></blockquote>Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664819254513907070.post-48500666473753051802012-06-13T13:28:00.000-04:002012-07-02T11:37:06.750-04:00Kiss The Dead<h3>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">
Kiss The Dead</span></h3>
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_1919634027">by Laurell K. Hamilton</a><br />
<a href="http://www.laurellkhamilton.org/works/kiss-the-dead/">An Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter Novel</a><br />
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<h2>
Disappointment and disbelief tinge my thoughts as I finish this latest installment of Anita. My feelings border on those of betrayal.</h2>
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This read is quick, easily done in a day. And if you have read any of the other Anita novels, you will skim more than half due to redundancy.<br />
<br />
I usually tolerate Ms. Hamilton's, tendency to repeat herself constantly because she tells a good meaty story and the repetition is simply a bit of extra fat allowing you to savor the tale. But this novel misses the mark.<br />
<br />
Its as if she lost became entangled in her own backstory and only managed to crawl out with a few quick shots of classic "vampire gore" and "endangered lovers".<br />
<br />
Those familiar threads are there: relationship phobias, power struggles, cop talk, steamy sex. But none of it digs deep and intertwines with her usual flowing magma river to erupt spectacularly in her last few pages.<br />
<br />
We've heard it all before - and some of it is brand new and being referenced in the past tense! How the heck did we get cut out of the Jade situation? And Dev with Asher... I feel so lost. I am going to have to go back and read the novel before this one just incase I missed it all.<br />
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<br />Sweet Vernal Zephyrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570337754816706767noreply@blogger.com0