They're Back! Those wonderful Church Bulletins!

Thank God for church ladies with typewriters These sentences (with all the BLOOPERS) actually appeared in church bulletins or were announced in church services:

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The Fasting & Prayer Conference includes meals.

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The sermon this morning: 'Jesus Walks on the Water.' The sermon tonight: 'Searching for Jesus.'

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Ladies, don't forget the rummage sale. It's a chance to get rid of those things not worth keeping around the house. Bring your husbands.

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Remember in prayer the many who are sick of our community. Smile at someone who is hard to love. Say 'Hell' to someone who doesn't care much about you.

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Don't let worry kill you off - let the Church help.

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Miss Charlene Mason sang 'I will not pass this way again,' giving obvious pleasure to the congregation...

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For those of you who have children and don't know it, we have a nursery downstairs.

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Next Thursday there will be tryouts for the choir. They need all the help they can get.

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Irving Benson and Jessie Carter were married on October 24 in the church. So ends a friendship that began in their school days.

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A bean supper will be held on Tuesday evening in the church hall. Music will follow.

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At the evening service tonight, the sermon topic will be 'What Is Hell?' Come early and listen to our choir practice

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Eight new choir robes are currently needed due to the addition of several new members and to the deterioration of some older ones.

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Scouts are saving aluminum cans, bottles and other items to be recycled.Proceeds will be used to cripple children.

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Please place your donation in the envelope along with the deceased person you want remembered.

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The church will host an evening of fine dining, super entertainment and gracious hostility.

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Potluck supper Sunday at 5:00 PM - prayer and medication to follow.

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The ladies of the Church have cast off clothing of every kind. They may be seen in the basement on Friday afternoon.

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This evening at 7 PM there will be a hymn singing in the park across from the Church. Bring a blanket and come prepared to sin.

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Ladies Bible Study will be held Thursday morning at 10 AM. All ladies are invited to lunch in the Fellowship Hall after the B. S. is done.

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The pastor would appreciate it if the ladies of the Congregation would lend him their electric girdles for the pancake breakfast next Sunday.

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Low Self Esteem Support Group will meet Thursday at 7 PM. Please use the back door.

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The eighth-graders will be presenting Shakespeare's Hamlet in the Church basement Friday at 7 PM.. The congregation is invited to attend this tragedy.

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Weight Watchers will meet at 7 PM at the First Presbyterian Church. Please use large double door at the side entrance.

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The Associate Minister unveiled the church's new campaign slogan last Sunday:

"I Upped My Pledge - Up Yours"

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I'm rereading Traitor's Knot and Queen's Play

Since I can't get up any enthusiasm about reading other authors, I'm doing rereads.  I also listened to The Mote in God's Eye.  Here's my review:

The Mote in God's Eye by Larry Niven

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


3.5 stars



I listened to this book, and although the narrator barked it out like a sports announcer, it was engaging, suspenseful, and quite funny at times.  The narrator was not a distraction once I got used to his style.

The human space explorers seemed incredibly naive and stupid at times in their trust of an alien species, to whom they gave human attributes without questioning their own assumptions.  This was a little distracting from the suspense, as I knew something bad was coming.

The best part was the first half of the book when they visited the alien planet and became acquainted with the aliens.  The second half was less interesting when they returned to their home system and brought an alien ambassador with them.  The ending seemed a little contrived and anticlimactic.







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With my typical compulsiveness, I am now obsessed with Francis Crawford of Lymond

I have joined some yahoo groups comprised of similarly obsessed people and have just added this to my review of Pawn in Frankincense over on Goodreads.  Someone at the yahoo Marzipan group lifted it from another blog and did not give a source, but I'm posting it because it says so much better than I what these books have meant to me:

“It’s a good thing she’s dead.” It was my friend Nora on the phone. Not hello, Penelope, this is Nora, how are you? Just “It’s a good thing she’s dead, or I’d kill her.”
 
I’d bugged Nora to read the Lymond Chronicles, raving that it was the most intense reading experience of my life. Now Nora had just finished book four, Pawn in Frankincense. She was crying, she was raging, and she wanted nothing better than to throttle Dorothy Dunnett. I knew how she felt.  Lymond is my favorite sort of hero: the tormented mastermind. He is a poet, musician, mathematical genius, and the greatest military mind of his day. He is witty in at least a dozen languages. He is also so racked by self-loathing that he repeatedly tries to goad otherwise nice people into killing him. He commits appalling acts for reasons that may become clear only hundreds of pages later into the story. Which brings me back to Nora’s phone call. Dunnett inflicts some
cruel sucker punches on her readers. This is embarrassing to admit, but at one point, I screamed “Traitor!,” threw the book across the room, and began wailing in grief. My bewildered husband tried to comfort me, saying “But it’s only a story.” Only a story? For the past six weeks, it had been my life.

I hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving.

I did.  A long ride to Massachusetts and back, a gourmet meal at my daughters, the company of my family and some interesting guests.  And finally to end the day finishing this lovely, lovely book.  What more can you ask?

Checkmate by Dorothy Dunnett

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


10 stars



I shall harness thee a chariot
of lapis-lazuli and gold
Come into our dwelling, in the
perfume of the cedars.

This fragment of poetry is laced through the chapters of this book, and for me, it evokes the emotions of longing and and finally, fulfillment to be found in the Lymond Chronicles.

Masterfully woven, filled with tension, hope, despair, grief, violence and love; Checkmate brings the saga of Francis Crawford of Culter, Comte de Sevigny to a close.  Alas, any story following this is bound to be a disappointment, with a few notable exceptions.  Dunnett is without question a master of historical fiction.  She challenges us with her French and literary quotations, her olde English, to join the journeys and adventures of the remarkable Lymond.  I promise you, if you accept the challenge, and wade into the depths of 16th century Europe with Lymond, his brother Richard, his mother Sybilla, his fellow armsmen, his women, and finally his love - you will not be disappointed.  I join the ranks of people who say, 'Oh, I love these books,' and sigh with poignant regret that they are now read.

I will be rereading them, that is without doubt.  From racing through to find out what happens, to stopping to savor the beauty and terror along the way, I find myself even now returning to parts of the book to reread, to recall bits lost and to re-savor the wealth.



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The Ringed Castle by Dorothy Dunnett

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


What to say about this book?  Lymond has turned himself into a cold and masterful leader after the trauma of the events of the last book.  Guzel takes him to Russia and he proceeds to become commander in chief of Tsar Ivan's armies when he's sent back to England.  The descriptions of Russia in the frozen north, the shipwreck, his struggles with Ivan and his princes - all are told with Dunnett's masterful writing, filled with terror and suspense.  I shivered from the cold.  I sobbed with the loss.  I hated Lymond while admiring his genius and hoped for him to become human again.  Meanwhile, Philippa, back in England, is growing up.  Beautiful, filled with masterful suspense, the most detailed and realistic shipwreck I've ever read, and heartbreaking as I hoped against hope that Lymond can survive and become human again.



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I just revised this review but I still don't think it does the book justice

Fugitive Prince by Janny Wurts

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


After rereading this book recently, I'm revising my rating to 5 stars.  It does slow down from the pace of the first three, but now that I have the full story of the 3rd Arc, I have to give it 5 stars as every element in this book is essential to the completion of the whole story.


As in the previous books, the plot is intricate and compelling.  The battle continues with Lysaer wanting to wage war and Arithon fleeing to try and avoid more killing, which tears him to pieces.  Each book adds more layers to the overall picture of the world of Athera, the ancient Paravians who have disappeared, the mystery of where they went and why humans are on this world at all.  It reminds me of one of those pictures with many layers of sheer paper with the objects colored in that keep building complexity upon complexity until the image is very rich and powerful.


One intense and emotional scene consists of the sorcerers confronting Lysaer and giving him alternate choices of action.

One of the important things that emerges more completely in this book is that since their empathic connection while healing the fisherman in Merior, Elaira and Arithon are able to maintain an empathic connection with one another and are able to be aware of how the other one is feeling by reaching out empathetically.  The love that develops in this way is quite powerful, even though they are not able to be together because of Elaira's oath to the Koriani for celibacy and obedience.




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Pawn in Frankincense by Dorothy Dunnett

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Holy smokin' story!  I nearly had a heart attack several times and if I hadn't been at work, I would've sobbed my eyeballs out.

And of course, now I can't stop, so planned November reads??? Bye-bye!  This series is absolutely wonderful. 

Why are people surprised that Lymond loves?  Of course he does -- so intensely he just can't show it.

I can't say anything at all without it being a spoiler...Lymond takes a gift to Sultan Suleiman in Istanbul from the King of France chasing his bastard son before the baby is murdered by the totally evil Graham Mallett. As always we see him through everyone's eyes but his.  New characters and old, ever fascinating and richly drawn.  Incredible detail of the riches and cruelties of the Islamic countries of that time.  The looting of Hagia Sophia, the maze of the Seraglio where the harem is kept, the polishing of Phillippa - his old friend's daughter from previous books.  All of it fine, beautiful, terrifying, and achingly sad.



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The Disorderly Knights by Dorothy Dunnett

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Oh my god!  What a book!  There's only one problem!  Now I've gotta read Pawn in Frankincense!  And I'm already dreading it all being over!



Dunnett spins a wonderful, intricate, suspenseful plot.  Sometimes she makes me laugh, sometimes she makes me look up words, but always she entertains me.  What rewards a little work can bring.  :)



This series has made me fall in love with the characters over time.  The depth of character building is phenomenal.  The plotting is sine qua non.  The world building is impeccable.  What else can I say?  Just read them.  It's worth it. 



The The Dorothy Dunnett Companion is very helpful to those of us who can't just identify quotes and French off the top of our heads.



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Bah Humbug!

The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett

My rating: 1 of 5 stars


I read good reviews of this book.  I loved Eye of the Needle.  It is 40 hours long and I figured it would be 40 hours of good entertainment.  Not.



I found the characterizations thin, annoying, and implausible.  The historical research was abysmal - seemed to be restricted to what anyone visiting a European cathedral can read about cathedral structure.  The writing is pedantic at best.



I believe in cutting my losses early, so I gave up after 12 hours and started Dunnett's The Disorderly Knights.



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Another fine addition to the Vorkosigan Saga

CryoBurn by Lois McMaster Bujold

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


As someone said, it was like visiting with old friends.  Very funny, touching, Miles and his wild antics have matured a little.  Having to do with cryogenics as the title implies.  Miles, of course, was revived from a cryo-sleep years before.

I knew something sad was coming at the end from reading other reviews so was braced for it, but still, it was out of the blue and brought tears to my eyes.  ;(  ;(  ;(

Another fine addition to the Vorkosigan Saga.



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From The Huffington Post

DNC member:  White House couldn't sell cocaine to Charlie Sheen!

Finished this last night:

Queens' Play by Dorothy Dunnett

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I feel fairly inarticulate and incompetent to review a Dorothy Dunnett book except to say that they are complex, difficult reading, rich, fantastic, funny, sad, lovable and thoroughly worth the effort.

An example of her rich and original prose:  It had been a sharp night; but now the early sun, glaring cross grained through the branches, laid fresh black contours, thinly prowling, over the people below.

And a blurb from a book jacket: "Her hero, the enigmatic Lymond, [is] Byron crossed with Lawrence of Arabia... He moves in an aura of intrigue, hidden menace and sheer physical daring."
                                        ---Times Literary Supplement (London)

How could I improve on that?  He's also utterly handsome, blonde, artistic, thoroughly accomplished, brilliant (much more so than I), and a gentleman.

Her books are romance literature in the original sense - a style of heroic prose and verse narrative current in Europe from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance.  Although there is a love story in this one, it is not the kind of 'romance' that is lately popularized.  Far from it, thank God.  Although I can enjoy a cheesy romance novel at times, a steady diet of them has turned me into a voracious reader of novels with some meat, some deeper meaning, some difficulty, and that make me think.

In this episode of Lymond's career, he learns a bitter lesson about what his ability to influence and inspire people can do when he is careless of their vulnerability and weakness.



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The third installment of The Cycle of Fire by Janny Wurts

Shadowfane by Janny Wurts

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Demons or aliens, star ships with the technology to create sorcerers, plenty of psychological drama reins in the last installment of The Cycle of Fire.

For those who find Janny Wurts 'too difficult' will find this trilogy fairly easy going, but with some sophisticated psychological twists.  This element in Wurts' writing is what draws me to her books.  As in her later work, layers are uncovered gradually to reveal depth and the unexpected.

Dreamweaver, Firelord, and Stormwarden fight heroically to save mankind from the destruction desired by alien races (or demons) in revenge for being taken from their home planets.

I do think a fourth book would be lovely.  There is plenty of meat here for more.

A great listen!



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In other news, I think my refrigerator is sick.  The top half of the freezer is no longer freezing and I found the source of that awful smell I've been searching high and low for.  Also, I'm starting to wonder if I'm coming down with something, as I am achey and very tired.

I just finished this one, too.  Very good, but the narrator a little too flat.

A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Afghanistan from the woman's point of view, lovely, sad, hopeful.  The only surprise here is the mercy of some Taliban.  The friendship and love between Mariam and Laila is very moving.  Hosseini does a great job of getting inside their heads.  At times I felt sorry for Rashaad, a pitiful and brutal man in a society with no room for healing of old wounds and for recognition of the sacred feminine.



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The election sucked

But it wasn't as bad as it could've been.  And I'm not sure how a bunch of Republicans could be worse than the Democrats in Congress the last two years.  They're all idiots.  Connecticut of course went Democratic and I almost didn't vote, but dragged myself to the polls after work Tuesday.  So I did my civic duty.

Got my new iPhone last night and have been busy setting it up.  It's Tres Cool.  A little trouble reading some websites, like Goodreads.

We have a new Democratic governor, Malloy.  Don't know a thing about him.  Hopefully CT will continue to be liberal with its social programs.

Well, gotta go to work.

Stayed up most of the night reading this one.

Flowers from the Storm by Laura Kinsale

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Well, this was just delightful.  I promised myself a romance after I finished Anathem and this was it.  A typical historical romance between the rake and the prig, but with many original twists and turns.  I can't say too much or it will spoil it.  The writing is very good, the plot tight, and there was some pretty funny snarky humor.  The romance is great.  Loved the characters, the side characters, the setting.

Oh and it's a page turner.  Or else it's just my compulsive behavior at work, but I had to read to the end and stayed up most of the night to do it.  :D

Lovely, just lovely.



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I just now remembered this book!

All Flags Flying: American Patriotic Quilts as Expressions of Liberty by Robert Bishop

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I have to give it five stars since my quilt is in it as the winner for South Carolina, where I was living at the time.  :)

A nice honor.  My quilt toured the world for 5 years before it was returned to me, where it now hangs in my bedroom.



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Read this as two separate books - The Mirror of Her Dreams, and A Man Rides Through

Mordant's Need by Stephen R. Donaldson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I understand why so many people love these books.  How can anyone think of this story without a feeling of amused warmth?  My status updates reveal my progress as I read it, I think.



The writing is impeccable, the structure perfect, the story inventive and original within the framework of boy meets girl, girl follows boy, both stumble around trying to find themselves, both are in danger, they discover their true talent, they fall in love, they fight together for the right, they live together in the peaceful kingdom happily ever after.



The 'couldn't say shit if she had a mouthful' heroine finds her voice and says 'oh, shit' when she needs to.  The clumsy puppy of a hero stops stumbling around and becomes a man.  The villain comes to a fitting end, amusing and ironic.



The concept of 'image translation' is inventive.  I'm not that widely read in the fantasy literature realm, but I've never read anything like it before.



My only complaint is the size and heft of the book.  If I had it to do over, I would have read the two books separately.  It was heavy and awkward, my arms got tired, I feared the pages would get torn as I turned them against my stomach.  Finally I laid the book on a pillow in my lap and that made it a little easier.



Great read!



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10/30	page 908		93.0%	""His courage, however came as a pleasant surprise." -- lol"
10/29	page 747		76.0%	"Holy crap!"
10/29	page 697		71.0%	"They've kidnapped the queen."
10/28	page 680		69.0%	"O my word. Things is a-poppin'"
10/27	page 611		62.0%	"Holy cow!" 2 comments
10/27	page 556		57.0%	"Moving on into "A Man Rides Through" and gasp! Terisa has finally found a pair! And even she knows she should've done it halfway through the last book. Veddy interesting indeed, my dear Watson."
10/25	page 483		49.0%	"Finished The Mirror of Her Dreams. Starting A Man Rides Through." 5 comments
10/25	page 463		47.0%	"I want to shake this stupid woman until her brains rattle!"
10/25	page 420		43.0%	"Damn! Wish I'd bought the two books separately. This thing makes Sanderson look like a piker."
10/24	page 274		28.0%	"Things are looking up in my regard for our hero and heroine. Terisa is starting to grow some balls."
10/23	page 223		23.0%	"The heroine is a wimp and an idiot and the hero is cute but a total klutz. Am sure things will change, but hope it's soon."
10/21	page 157		16.0%	"Terisa needs to decide she isn't invisible :-\"
10/20	page 113		12.0%	"Getting better. More action."
10/19	page 70		7.0%	"Going back to this one tonight."
10/11	page 70		7.0%	"Fascinating."
10/11	page 3		0.0%	"Starting with Mirror of Her Dreams."

#2 in The Cycle of Fire

Keeper of the Keys by Janny Wurts

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The Cycle of Fire continues, with Jaeric running from his destiny because of his horror of ending like his father.  How contemporary is that?  The elements of science fiction are more plausible than they were in the first book.  Sailing and the sea are vivid elements in the story, well written, making me feel the wind and the surf and the salt spray.



The demons are nasty and disgusting critters, the magic intriguing, and the characters finely drawn.  It's interesting reading this early work after reading the Wars of Light and Shadow and seeing the hints of elements that are much further developed in the later series.



Janny does have a way of weaving an intriguing fairy tale, scary, seductive, and at the same time comfortable... a place I really like to be.



The magic has a lot to do with using the mind's telepathic abilities and 'dream sense'. I was thinking about how little we know about the mind and wondering if the brain could be developed to the point where some of these capabilities could be used by us humans.



In other books by Janny, 'mage' sense is mostly a heightened awareness achieved through rigorous training and native talent to observe things that most of us never see -- energy emitted by growing things and rocks, auras, and the like. I really don't think it's so far beyond the realm of possibility that the brain could be trained or utilized more fully to encompass some of those skills.



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As usual, Jason Linkins at The Huffington Post is being entertaining in his blog today

About The Chris Matthews Show:  "Yes, ha ha. I got the yen to watch this show today because I had to go to the Apple Store yesterday, and I was like, "Where's John Heilemann, to explain politics to me? It's Saturday afternoon and I've been drinking whiskey sours all day!" And everyone looked at me like I had grown three heads. (Much later, I learned that I had actually been in a Chico's, and not the Apple Store, as I originally thought, which explains why my iPod doesn't work.)"

Here's a link to the whole article.

Gah! I know I've read this but can't really remember it.

The Shell Seekers by Rosamunde Pilcher




I saw this title while browsing GR and know I've read it. My memory of the plot is vague. I do not recall it as a great read, but hey, my memory is faulty. I am therefore giving it 3 stars as I know I finished it, so I must not have hated it.



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Last night when I finished War for the Oaks, I watched the BBC production of Yellowstone, which was pretty awesome. It reminded me, for some reason, of Athera, the mythical world created by Janny Wurts in her epic Wars of Light and Shadow series.

I'm plunging on through

Mordant's Need by Stephen R. Donaldson








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What a great read!

War for the Oaks by Emma Bull

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


4.5 stars

I understand this book was a pioneer in the urban fantasy world. One could only wish that the subsequent urban fantasy was as good.

At first it felt tired and old hat to me, but gradually, Emma Bull's world and characters began to build and before you know it, I was enchanted.

It's a tour de force of music, magic, honor, courage, and love. The Pouka is the most endearing and lovable character I've come across in a long time. Eddi's character gradually develops depth and the story takes off. The peripheral characters are delightful. Willy Silver is a true tragic hero. I'm smiling and happy.



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Anathem by Neal Stephenson

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Whew, I finished it.  What a weird experience.  Like a geek telling a romance tale, filled with quasi-medieval trappings, wild speculative thought, space drama, technology aka praxis, and ending with a wedding.



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One of the advantages of being old is Mondays off!

Originally I decided to take Mondays off to do some private practice, but once taken, Monday became an alluring day to do whatever the hell I wanted. And these days what I like most doing is reading. I am today going to finish this @#$%&* Stephenson book, Anathem! Sure hope the ending is worth all the effort of slogging through it!

Went to my daughter's last night for spaghetti, my favorite, and got to see everyone, even Emily who got home from work in time to eat while she watched us eat our dessert. I stopped at Whole Foods on my way to their house and bought one of their cakes for a treat. That place was hopping on Sunday night! What recession? Ha.

Anyway, it's a beautiful day and I'm going to read and maybe do some laundry and play with my puppies and eat leftover spaghetti!

From a great article in Newsweek about the Tea Partiers and their constant harangueing about the constitution.

As usual, Thomas Jefferson put it best. In a letter to a friend in 1816, he mocked “men [who] look at constitutions with sanctimonious reverence, and deem them like the arc of the covenant, too sacred to be touched”; “who ascribe to the men of the preceding age a wisdom more than human, and suppose what they did to be beyond amendment.” “Let us follow no such examples, nor weakly believe that one generation is not as capable as another of taking care of itself, and of ordering its own affairs,” he concluded. “Each generation is as independent as the one preceding, as that was of all which had gone before.” Amen.

Whole Article

Finished another Guy Gavriel Kay audio book last night

Here's my review:

The Last Light of the Sun by Guy Gavriel Kay

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Taking place in the same world as Al Rassan and the Sarantine Mosaic, the locale of this story is far north of there and a few hundred years later. A different narrator than the other Kay books I've listened to lured me to try this one in audio format. It was a good decision.

As in all of Kay's books, there are several points of view and this time it seemed easier to follow than some of his other books. The picture he paints of the land and the characters is vivid and moving. The land is undergoing changes and the raids of the Ehrlings (read Vikings) up on the Anglcan (read English) are no longer as easy as they used to be. He follows the struggles of Alun ab Owyn, Bern Thorkellson and his father Thorkel Alannson, King Aeldred and his children, and the priest Cenion as they attempt to deal with honor and loss, cultural and religious changes, and love.

There is more magic in this book than in the others I've read. Faeries and other supernatural creatures populate the landscape while the religion of Jad harshly punishes those who are able to see and communicate with the Fey.

Some extremely gory torture and killing is hard to read about or listen to, but I'm sure it's historically accurate. All in all, a very enjoyable book.



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Now if I can finish Neal Stephenson's Anathem today, I'll be in seventh heaven. It's been a long gruelling trudge through that one, but recently it's picked up. Only about 300 pages to go.

This is too funny! Buffy vs Edward: Twilight Remixed -- [original version]

I'm a mod for this group

Fantasy Book Club Series

155 members

Fantasy series discussions with book giveaways
Wars of Light and Shadow - J...

Books we've read

The Curse of the Mistwraith

by Janny Wurts

Start date: June 1, 2009

The Ships of Merior

by Janny Wurts

Start date: June 1, 2010

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Sigh! Thump, thump goes my heart.

Woo-Woot!!

Alex O'Loughlin in his new incarnations.  No more Mick St. John, sadly, but he's still pretty nice.

Finished this last night

Deceiver by C.J. Cherryh

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


The only thing wrong with this book is that I have to wait 'til April for the next one. >-< (that's a grumpy face). I like how she's changing points of view. It began a book or so ago and at first, I wasn't sure how I felt about it -- gasp! change in my comfortable atevi world? -- but now am liking it quite a lot. There were some truly hilarious scenes with Ilisidi and Cajieri, and of course the trademark tension of a potentially deadly political disaster resulting in bloodshed. And one scene where Tano puts his hand out to block Barb from hugging Bren with her typical brainlessness and she is knocked backward to the the floor, hitting her head and effectively shutting her up by rendering her unconscious. Something that should've been done to Barb several books back as I'm sure other readers of the series will agree.


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Rereading this in November

Traitor's Knot by Janny Wurts

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I could die happy wrapped in the beauty of Janny's prose. :) In this book, Arithon heals from one trauma only to plunge himself into the middle of another. His doofus brother, Lysaer, has gotten himself wrapped up with some necromancers and Arithon has to try to save the world (and his brother, btw) from their dark and nefarious crutches. Elaira is shut off from their empathic connection during this process and she (and I) nearly die of fear for his life. More of the heart stopping action, the beautiful soaring prose, and the gradual revelation of the mystery that weaves the world of Athera into such a magical and beautiful place. The only drawback is that one more book read brings me one book closer to the ending of this bewitching, compelling, and marvelous tale.



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Books I've read or plan to read this month - October 2010

Sandra\ aka\ Sleo's bookshelf: october-shelf




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The incredible finale of the Rai Kirah trilogy by Carol Berg

Restoration by Carol Berg

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This is one stupendous trilogy.  I scarcely know what to say.  Each book is entire unto itself, but taken as a whole, the story told is so astounding, so emotionally satisfying, and so complete, that I truly urge you to read all three.



First of all, Carol Berg is a fine story teller and her writing style is straight forward, while at the same time, packing a punch that only comes to one gradually as the story builds.  Yes, there were times that I began to wonder where this was going; yes, there were times that I wanted her to hurry up and get on with it.  And yet, in the end, every part was necessary for the whole.



The story is about a slave and his emperor, it's about power - both temporal and supernatural - it's about love and about the interplay between the two.  It's about fighting our demons and what happens when they are banished or killed; it's about how absolute power destroys love and about how powerless we are in the face of losing what we love.  It's about how demons bring creativity and madness - an example of Lucifer being 'Bringer of Light'?



It is, in short, magnificent.  There are few books that move me so powerfully - Janny Wurts' Wars of Light and Shadow, Guy Gavriel Kay's Lions of Al Rassan, and this one - the Rai Kirah trilogy.



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Beyond Reality group on Goodreads

   

       

                  Beyond Reality       

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        Welcome to the Beyond Reality SF&F discussion group on GoodReads.  In Beyond Reality, each of our me...

         

               

Books we've read

                                           

                                     
                His Majesty's Dragon

                by Naomi Novik

                                             Start date: April  1, 2009
               
                 

                  

                                     

                                     
                Hammered

                by Elizabeth Bear

                                             Start date: April  1, 2009
               
                 

                  

                   
               
               

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This Rai Kirah trilogy by Carol Berg is FABULOUS. Of course, everything she writes is.

Revelation by Carol Berg

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


4.75 stars

It would be five stars except that there was an overly long (for me) passage in the middle with Seyonne in the land of the demons that didn't keep my interest.  Beginning and ending were fabulous.  The psychological underpinnings are spot-on and the action compelling.  This is a fabulous trilogy.  I am now beginning Restoration.



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Finished two books today!

Light in August by William Faulkner

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Ah, the depth, richness, tragedy and beauty of Faulkner.  In this story he portrays the true tragedy of ignorance and racism as it's played out in a small southern town in the 30's. 

An orphan boy, abandoned on the steps of an orphanage by his insane grandfather after his mother dies in childbirth ends up as tragically as one might suspect.  Other characters are twined around and through the story of Joe Christmas, so called because he was found at Christmas, their stories as tragic and filled with pathos as his.



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Transformation by Carol Berg

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Well crafted, complex characters, suspense, tension, battles with demons, a truly mixed hero, a prince who is spoiled beyond redemption and yet has a spark of something humane in his soul.  Terrific read.  Can't wait for the next one, Revelation.

Carol Berg is a true delight to read, after slogging my way through a couple of mediocre and endless books, a pleasure to make the spirit soar and restore one's faith in inspired fiction.



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Much ado about nothing!

The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Whew!  I finished the darned thing.

It's really only 2.5 stars, but figured I'd be generous as the ending was pretty good.  Dalinar finally started acting like a man.

But as far as I'm concerned it was a lot of to do about not much at all.  There were inconsistencies, and I was so aggravated throughout by some of the insanities of the society that I didn't enjoy it.  And there was no explanation for a lot of it, mainly the reason women had to cover their left hands.  Ridiculous.  And no rationale at all.  Most stories that have screwy rules like that at least try to explain them, even if the explanation is lame.

I certainly have no desire to read another Sanderson.  It was my first and last, thank you very much.



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Another reader made this comment:
I'm sorry you feel that way about Brandon Sanderson, he's my favorite writer and I've read everything he's written and loved every single one. I'm halfway through this book now and having read the entire published set of Wheel of Time books, understand the kind of foundation necessary for a multi-volume epic series. *shrug*

To which I replied:
I understand the foundation necessary for an epic series. I found his characterizations dull. They felt shallow and simplistic. I like a little more complexity. The artificial rules of this culture and their mostly unquestioned acceptance by the characters was annoying to me. Dalinar and Kaladin were the most interesting characters, but Dalinar's prudishness was silly and Kaladin's excessive guilt annoying. Shallan was so naive as to be unbelievable, and the whole issue with the stolen soulcaster had holes so big you could walk through them. There were things about it that were enjoyable - his battle scenes were great, the whole concept of the bridge crews and the shattered plains were intriguing. Since I am obviously in the minority about this book, I don't think Sanderson has to worry about losing one fan.

And here are my updates while reading:
page 864
86.0% "Aw, Dalinar's in love. But he's such a friggin' prude." 2 comments
09/26 page 844
84.0%
09/26 page 700
69.0% "I hate it when authors think I'm stupid. Shallan confessed to stealing the soulcaster, then doesn't tell her her father owned one, and no one wonders where the other one came from? The broken one she replaced her theft with? C'mon."
09/26 page 666
66.0% "All these pages and we still don't know what happened to Tien and maybe we'll find out what happened to Cenn. I'm sure Kaladin is blameless in both deaths and is wallowing in self flagellation."
09/23 page 665
66.0% "Holy Mackerel! Everyone's getting magic!"
09/22 page 644
64.0% "Something's happening to Kaladin and Shallan."
09/21 page 591
59.0% "I'm expecting big things after p. 600!"
09/20 page 591
59.0% "Almost 600 pages."
09/19 page 455
45.0% "A little better. A few are scoffing at the stupid rules."
09/18 page 409
41.0% "I'll be back in a bit."
09/16 page 369
37.0% "Maybe I'm being picky, but would Dalinar really ask himself if his visions are coming from his subconscious mind? Does such a concept exist in such a primitive society?"
09/15 page 356
35.0%
09/15 page 356
35.0% "'His father was there still there.' Another error." 2 comments
09/15 page 325
32.0% "I don't much like this society. Hopefully there will be major changes in the series." 5 comments
09/14 page 181
18.0% "This advanced read copy sure has a lot of mistakes. Hope they got edited out in the final version." 5 comments
09/14 page 141
14.0% "169 must be a typo." 2 comments
09/12 page 169
17.0% "There's something naive about the way this is written."
09/12 page 85
8.0% "It's reminding me of G.R.R. Martin the way each chapter goes to another person and POV."
09/11 page 15
1.0% "My first ever First Reads book. Hope I like it. It's a friggin' brick."

Stormwarden by Janny Wurts

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


A great fun fantasy romp for YA.  Written in 1986(?) or so, a lot of precursor for the Wars of Light and Shadow.  Not at all in the story, but in some of the fantasy elements, and definitely the sea and sailing.  Now I can't wait for 2&3 to come out on Audible.



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Pretender by C.J. Cherryh

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This one was, if anything, more exciting than the last in this truly engrossing series.  I had quite a few moments where my heart stopped, several times when my eyes teared up, and most unusual, more than one belly laugh.  I cannot recommend this series highly enough.  But start at the beginning, please, as each story follows the next with barely a pause to draw breath.  None of the books end on a cliff hanger, thank God, but only in a breathing space, with interest still engaged to wonder what will happen next as Bren negotiates the difficult world of atevi politics and the entrance of yet new species of aliens from far worlds.  In addition, the bonds he forms with the atevi grow more intense and remarkable, even as other atevi resistant to change continue to try to assassinate him.  His atevi bodyguards are remarkable characters, as well as the president of the world, or aiji as he is called in Ragi language, and his mother the dowager is the most remarkable of all, blunt spoken, commanding, fierce, intelligent, and Bren's biggest supporter.  Wow, is all I can say.



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Fabulous and friendly.

Destroyer by C.J. Cherryh

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Once again, Cherryh has proven herself master of political intrigue and tight, suspenseful plotting.  This is one of the best.  This story also includes some deep emotional scenes -- between Bren and his old love, Barb who is now with his brother Toby; between Bren and Jago as he assures her his future and his heart lies with her, although, of course, he doesn't say 'heart' as that is meaningless to atevi.  There's also a touching scene between Cajieri, the aiiji's heir, and his new adolescent friends (not, of course, called 'friends'.)

All in all, another more than satisfying chapter in the atevi saga.



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Palimpsest by Catherynne M. Valente

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I have to think about this one a while.  What a weird experience.



9/21 - after mulling a while, I decided on 3 stars because I both loved and hated it.  I decided I had to read it almost stream of consciousness as it's written, since stopping to ponder the words detracted from the mood.  At times I was annoyed, irritated, aggravated by the characters.  At other times I felt an almost unbearable soaring of spirit and longing along with the characters.  At times I almost stopped reading wondering why I was subjecting myself to such misery; at other times I couldn't stop reading I was so enthralled.



I'm totally mystified as to why this was in the running for a Hugo award.  Isn't that an award for science fiction?  I don't think this book is science fiction.  I keep trying to decide what it is and think it's some sort of poetic metaphor for following one's bliss, for finding where passion takes one, for seeking one's meaning in unusual choices that are definitely against the norm.



The author most definitely has a gift for using words almost as paint brushes or as musical instruments to create a mood larger than the meaning of the sentence of paragraph.  It's worth a read if only to experience this strangely wonderful phenomenon.



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Memories

Sigh.  Istanbul in 2000.  I was actually there.

Nellie is my new best friend at the Tax Collector's office

After a long saga of trying to get the address where I live straightened out with the DMV, I paid my taxes, had several phone calls with Nellie, and she allowed me to fax her my canceled check and she mailed me the release so I can renew my registration for my poor old car. She even called to check which address to send it to! Bless you, Nellie!

I finished this book tonight:

Killbox by Ann Aguirre

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


It's really 3.75 stars, I guess. I felt a little cheated all the way through the book. I was halfway through before I got into it completely. Even then, it wasn't an 'I can't put it down' book. I definitely felt cheated at the end. I think it was a cheap shot, leaving it like that. The big battle with the dreadnaught was off stage. A lot of it was off stage. We spent a lot of time in Sirantha's head. She was a little repetitive. I got tired of the constant reminders that March had to be separate from her because of their positions in the war. I got it, already.

Don't get me wrong. It was good, still. I'm picking at the flaws. The plot twists at the end were spectacular. The Morguts are a worthy and creepy enemy. Vel continues a fascinating character and his bond with Sirantha is a boon to the story. Read and enjoy.



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Now I have to slog the rest of the way through Brandon Sanderson's The Way of Kings, which is definitely a mixed blessing. A long mixed blessing, at more than 1000 pages!

Another Man's Moccasins by Craig Johnson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


A very amusing and poignant 8 hours spent listening to George Guidall's Walt Longmire solve a mystery while having flashbacks to a similar murder he solved in Viet Nam during the war. His childhood friend, Henry Standing Bear provides pithy advice that is hilarious and to the point. Dog, whose name is Dog, plays less of a role in this story, but he's reliably there, along with Victoria the hot and sassy deputy and other memorable characters who populate the Powder River area where the novels take place. Very good, very worthwhile listen.



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