Monday, May 30, 2011

Teaser Tuesday - A River in the Sky - Again

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just:
* Grab your current read
* Open to a random page
* Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
* BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
* Share the title and author, too, so that other Teaser Tuesday participants can add the book to their To Be Read (TBR) Lists if they like your teasers!

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Amelia Peabody and her husband Emerson, having been banned from their much beloved Valley of the Kings in Egypt, agree to accompany a would-be archaeologist (who may also be a German spy) to Palestine in August of 1910. 
They have arrived safely in the port city of Jaffa, only to find that one of their party is missing.  Once again Amelia must use all her considerable skills to discern the truth and prevent a catastrophe - both political and archeological!

The Tease:
"'It's a woman's handkerchief." Nefret handed it to me. "Does that suggest a possible reason for Ramses's being delayed?"
I had heard of blazing eyes but had always believed that was a literary metaphor.  Perhaps it was only the reflection of the candle flame in her blue orbs." - A River in the Sky,  by Elizabeth Peters

What's your Tease?

Friday, May 27, 2011

Bits & Pieces

Over at The Wertzone, Adam has posted a very well written review of Season 1 of AMC's The Walking Dead.
I seriously loved Season 1 (even though it was extremely short), and am anxiously awaiting Season 2 - hopefully it will be every bit as good as Season 1 is.  Anyway, he gives it 4.5 stars, and explains why much better than I can, so go read what he has to say about it!

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If you are a Twitter user, you may have noticed that yesterday was a huge day for #lessinterestingbooks, where people took popular book titles and twisted them to be less interesting than they actually were.  (For example: "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Stuff that Everyone Totally Already Knows").
Aidan, over at A Dribble of Ink, talks about some of his favorites - you really should check them out, as many of them were very clever and kept me giggling for hours when I should have been working!

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I stumbled across this Harry Potter movie poster earlier this week, and I'd love to be able to give credit to whoever posted it, but I've completely forgotten.  Thank you to whoever you are, because quite frankly, I think this is the single most stunning movie poster I've ever seen in my life. 

No movie title needed - just the message "It all ends" and the date.  The steely calm in Harry's eyes and sparks flying through the air lend a feeling of deathly urgency to the scene, while the crumbled remains of Hogwarts in the background show what's at stake.  Whoever came up with this art concept should get a raise, y'all, 'cause this is amazing!

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So that's all I have for today you guys! Everyone have a great weekend / holiday (depending on where you are) and we'll see you back again next week!  Happy Memorial Day!

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Covering the Cover - Timeless, by Gail Carriger

How on earth did I miss this?!?

Several weeks ago Orbit Books released the cover image for The Parasol Protectorate: Book the Fifth: Timeless, the final novel in the Alexia Tarabotti Series, which is expected to be available on March 1st, 2012.

Alexia, parasol firmly in hand, has apparently arrived in Egypt!  Spoilers suggest something about a vampire Queen in Alexandria and a new outbreak of the God-Breaker Plague.  But who knows?  No doubt Alexia will straighten them all out before tea time!

I do love this cover much, much more than the cover art for Book the Fourth: Heartless! It just "feels" more Alexia to me.  However, I think Soulless is still my favorite...or maybe Blameless?  I can't decide...

Book the Fourth: Heartless will be available July 1st, 2011.  I can't wait!

What do you think of the Timeless cover?  Love it or Leave it?

The first four Alexia Covers:


Monday, May 23, 2011

Teaser Tuesday - A River in the Sky

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just:
* Grab your current read
* Open to a random page
* Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
* BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
* Share the title and author, too, so that other Teaser Tuesday participants can add the book to their To Be Read (TBR) Lists if they like your teasers!

----------
Amelia Peabody and her husband Emerson, having been banned from their much beloved Valley of the Kings in Egypt, agree to accompany a would-be archaeologist (who may also be a German spy) to Palestine in August of 1910.  Once again Amelia must use all her considerable skills to discern the truth and prevent a catastrophe - both political and archeological!

The Tease:
"Emerson looked up from the book he was reading.  "The Old Testament," he remarked, "is a tissue of lies from start to finish."
As I have said before, and never tire of repeating, my husband is the greatest Egyptologist of this or any other century. It cannot be denied, however, that he holds somewhat unorthodox opinions on certain subjects." - A River in the Sky,  by Elizabeth Peters

What's your Tease?

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Review - The Gandalara Cycle

The Gandalara Cycle, by Randall Garrett & Vicki Ann Heydron * * * * *      
1. The Steel of Raithskar   3/18/2011
2. The Glass of Dyskornis 3/24/2011
3. The Bronze of Eddarta  3/27/2011
4. The Well of Darkness    4/4/2011
5. The Search for Ka        4/10/2011
6. Return to Eddarta         4/14/2011
7. The River Wall             4/26/2011

 The Gandalara Cycle was originally published between 1983 and 1986 (as far as I can tell).  I actually remember seeing them on the shelves of one of my local bookstores in the late 1980's and early 1990's, and wanting to read them but not being able to afford them.

Shortly after that they seemed to have disappeared.  Occasionally I would see part of the set in a used book store, but never a whole set.  Then one day a few months ago, my mother dropped off a sack of used books that she had been given and that she was going to use as trade-ins, but she decided to let me paw through them first to see if there was anything I wanted to read.  Most of them I'd either already read or had no desire to read, but suddenly, at the bottom of the last bag, I hit the jackpot!  The entire set of The Gandalara Cycle!!!

Ok - not really.  It wasn't the entire set.  It was missing books 1 & 2, but other than that, the entire set!!  I easily found books 1 & 2 at a local used book store (Powell's - have you heard of it?), and quickly found myself sinking into luxurious, old-fashioned, science-fiction-y goodness!

There's a certain "feel" (for lack of a better word) that you tend to find in older Sci-Fi, especially from the 1980's, that you just don't find in newer works.  At least that's how it feels to me - maybe that's just because that's when I first discovered Sci-Fi and Fantasy and the "feeling" is all in my head.  But whatever, these books have them.  They're kinda like "cozy mysteries" only this is "cozy Sci-Fi" if that makes any sense?

In the first book, The Steel of Raithskar, we are introduced to the elderly Ricardo, who is enjoying a Mediterranean cruise.  He has recently found out that he doesn't have long to live, and has decided to spend his remaining time enjoying life as he never has in the past, as he's always been too busy being a workaholic to stop and smell the roses, so to speak.  It's late in the evening, and he's walking on deck with a beautiful women he's just met, and they are enjoying the views of the moonlight on the water.  Suddenly they realize that an extremely bright light is hurtling directly at them from the sky.  Ricardo realizes they only have seconds to live, and closes his eyes in regret, holding Antonia close to his side.  Several moments later he opens his eyes to find himself, alone, in the middle of a desert, in a young and muscular body, wearing strange clothing and lying on the ground next to a dead man.  Ricardo is wounded himself, and his memories are fuzzy, but he begins walking towards the distant mountains to try to find help.

The first book then, is all about discovery, as he soon realizes that he is in someone else's body, and that someone wasn't always a very nice person.  He learns that he has a telepathic link with a enormous cat that is nearly the size of horse, and that he may be involved in the theft of a rare and priceless gem, the Ra'ira, which belongs to his home city of Raithskar, and that his father (or the father of the body he's currently inhabiting) is also suspected of the crime.  It takes him some time to get used to the strange  people and relationships in this brand new world he finds himself in, but he decides to try to make things better and clear his family's name by tracking down the real thieves.

As the series continues, he travels quite a bit, makes new friends and more than a few enemies, learning more about the situation he has found himself thrust into, until the final book in the series, The River Wall, very neatly and pleasantly brings all the loose threads together and wraps them all up nicely.  I was intrigued when he discovers where Gandalara actually is, and at how devoutly he was willing to follow what he had determined to be his destiny, and how hard he worked to be worthy of this second chance at life.  With his previous life experience and 60 plus years of wisdom, he is able to avoid many of the traps and pitfalls that most young men would normally make when they are in their 20's, although it doesn't make him totally immune, and he still makes mistakes.  But it's how he handles those mistakes and tries to make things right, that makes Ricardo, or Ricardon as he becomes known, such a great character.

The individual books in the series are all fairly short, which allows for quick easy reading.  Shocking twists and turns make for pleasant surprises along the way as we follow his adventures.  I gave the individual books mostly 3 & 4 stars, but I'm giving the series as a whole 5 stars, as the whole is greater than the sum of its' parts!  I hope that you someday have a chance to try this series, and that you enjoy it as much as I did!

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Teaser Tuesday - Ark

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just:
* Grab your current read
* Open to a random page
* Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
* BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
* Share the title and author, too, so that other Teaser Tuesday participants can add the book to their To Be Read (TBR) Lists if they like your teasers!

----------
"Ark" is the sequel to "Flood"  and tells the story of Ark 1 and the attempts of its passengers to save mankind from extinction as the ocean waters rise ever higher.

The Tease:
"All Holle felt was a cold horror. Since the day she'd joined the group, Don Meisel had been one of the obvious leaders. She'd even imagined he might make captain. And now he was gone, just like that.  If Don Meisel could lose his place so arbitrarily, then who might go tomorrow?" - Ark, by Stephen Baxter

What's your Tease?

Monday, May 16, 2011

Review - Movie catch-up!

Lately Bob and I have been going to movies - lots of movies - but I haven't had time to do full on reviews of any of them.  So instead, I thought I would group them together into some mini-reviews instead.  Sound all right?  Ok, let's go!

Red Riding Hood * * * * *
Amazing!  Stunning!  Gorgeous!  Beautiful!  Fantastic!!
I can't say enough good things about this movie.  It's stunningly beautiful, and a good story on top of that.  Amanda Seyfreid has been accused of under-acting, and I can't necessarily disagree, but I think she was perfect for the part.  The ending was a surprise, which was nice, although all the clues are there if one pays attention.  Overall I say this is a fabulous twist on the traditional tale, and it was well done.  Also, make sure you watch until the end of the credits for a special surprise!!

Scream 4 * * * *
Loads of fun!  I'm a huge fan of the series, although I'm not really a fan of horror movies in general.  The Scream series straddles the line between gory and suspense, and Scream 4 did not disappoint.  This one addresses the issue of the movie "reboot" or "reset" and the true horror is when you find out who the villain is and learn their motivation!  Neve Campbell rocks it out as usual, even with a mostly younger generation taking the front of the stage.  I loved it!

The Conspirator * * * *
This Robert Redford film is about a young lawyer in 1864 who is asked to defend one of the alleged members of the conspiracy to assassinate President Lincoln.  It's a very interesting movie, a good story, and it was fun to see a courtroom drama set in the past.  I find it odd that I haven't seen ANY promos, trailers, or commercials for this movie, and wouldn't have even known about it if someone online hadn't mentioned it in passing.  It's a good movie, but not necessarily a happy movie, and leaves you thinking when it's done.  Good stuff.

Water for Elephants * * * * *
I haven't read the book, (although I was already planning to read it when we went to see the movie, and now I'm even more excited about reading it!), so I can't speak to whether or not the movie stayed true to the book.  I've heard that it mostly does, but I can't speak to that myself.  However, I thoroughly enjoyed the movie, loved the story, loved the elephant, loved everything about it.  Pattinson and Witherspoon were great in their roles, and it was REALLY nice to see Pattinson do a movie where I didn't want to drive a stake through his heart. (Yes - I admit, I'm Team Jacob.  Get over it).  It's a beautiful story that will make you laugh and cry and want to run away to join the circus, and have your very own elephant for a pet.  Definite must see!

Hanna * * *
I totally loved this movie right up until the ending.  The movie is strange, funny, weird, twisted, and sad, and as the story unfolds, you totally end up rooting for the young Hanna, who is both strange and awesome.  And the ending is mostly perfect, but I think I kinda wanted more from it.  There's a definite feeling of "Wait!  What happens next?!?" but all in all it was pretty good.  Twisted, but good.

Rio * * * * *
Rio is the story of a parrot who gets kidnapped and lost in Rio, and his adventures in trying to get back to his human.  Along the way he makes new friends, and learns about what it means to live.  It's amazing, beautiful, funny, sad,  funny some more, and sweet.  The music was great!  Kids will love it!  Adults will love it!  Go see it now!!

Source Code * * * * *
Awesome!  Made of awesome!  Dipped in Awesome and cooked in Awesome!  AND - it's not the movie that you think it is based on the previews!!  Aha - sneaky!  But it's totally great and while it has its sad moments, it was a very, very good film.

Your Highness * *
Funny if you like the dumb humor type of films.  Interesting that it was a fantasy setting, but there were way too many sex and fart jokes for my taste, and I would've had to have been REALLY drunk to enjoy it.  The one good thing was hearing Natalie Portman say "...like a burning in my beaver" with a straight face.  But yes, it is THAT kind of movie.  Enter at your own risk.

Movies that I'm looking forward to in May are:
Thor
POTC: On Stranger Tides
Priest
Kung Fu Panda 2: The Kaboom of Doom!

Wait - what are you still doing here?  I thought I told you to hurry up and go see "Rio" right now!?!
Well, as long as you are here, leave a comment and let me know if you've seen any of the above movies and what you thought about them!
And also, I'm curious - what movies you are looking forward to seeing this month? What previews are looking particularly good to you?

--Update: Reposted 05.16.11 to clear up some issues raised by Blogger's Issues last week!  Happy Monday!

Monday, May 9, 2011

Teaser Tuesday - Changes - Part II

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just:
* Grab your current read
* Open to a random page
* Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
* BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
* Share the title and author, too, so that other Teaser Tuesday participants can add the book to their To Be Read (TBR) Lists if they like your teasers!

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All the rules have changed in this latest Harry Dresden novel.  In this teaser, Harry readies himself to face his most difficult challenge yet - saving a young girl from the evil Red Court Vampires before they can sacrifice her in a magical ritual.

The Tease:
"I picked up my bag, left St. Mary's behind me, and stalked out to my wicked godmother's limo, pulling the soft hood of my dark cape up over my head.
If I was on the road to Hell, at least I was going in style." -The Dresden Files: #13, Changes, by Jim Butcher

What's your Tease?

Monday, May 2, 2011

Teaser Tuesday - Changes

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just:
* Grab your current read
* Open to a random page
* Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
* BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
* Share the title and author, too, so that other Teaser Tuesday participants can add the book to their To Be Read (TBR) Lists if they like your teasers!

----------
So, as y'all know, I finished The Gandalara Cycle last week, and I was going to write up a review about the series this weekend, and write another about several of the movies that we've seen over the last few weeks.  However, life got in the way.  There was this massive wedding overseas (y'all might have heard about it?) and I had to watch like, seriously, 11 hours of television coverage because I just can't get enough of Will & Catherine!!  Then, just as I was coming down from that high, there was the whole Osama bin Laden thing, yada yada, more hours of television coverage, etc.  End result, I got no writing done.  None.  So I'll try again this week and we'll see what happens, yes?  Ok!!  Meanwhile, whet your appetite with this little gem from The Dresden Files:

The Tease:
"I looked for a way to get down the sidewalks without messing up anybody's equipment, and that was when they tried to kill me.  I'd been the target of a drive-by attempt once before.  This one was considerably more professional than the first." -The Dresden Files: #13, Changes, by Jim Butcher

What's your Tease?