tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-72413390795690331712024-03-14T15:23:22.314+10:30Victory Book-Sharing ChallengeRead less, more TV.Lukehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01760708446575775280noreply@blogger.comBlogger48125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-20516815359570031872014-01-03T21:02:00.001+10:302014-01-03T21:02:30.422+10:30New Year Challenge: DNFsLast year, we each had one book that we <b>did not finish</b>.<br />
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For Luke, it was my top book for 2013, <a href="http://booksharingchallenge.blogspot.com.au/2012/11/challenge-15-code-name-verity.html" target="_blank"><i>Code Name Verity</i></a> which he was mystifyingly able to <a href="http://booksharingchallenge.blogspot.com.au/2013/06/dnf-review-15-code-name-verity.html" target="_blank">stop reading</a> part way through.<br />
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For me, it was the somewhat lengthy <a href="http://booksharingchallenge.blogspot.com.au/2012/04/challenge-11-insurrection.html" target="_blank"><i>Insurrection</i></a> which I think would have benefited from me taking notes <a href="http://booksharingchallenge.blogspot.com.au/2012/09/dnf-review-11-insurrection.html" target="_blank">while reading</a>.<br />
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<b>Your Challenge:</b> to complete your DNF book by the end of January 2014.<br />
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Then we will start anew with shiny new Challenges and maybe even a guest post or two.Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10195246920739470934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-67653710315410017462013-12-06T18:34:00.000+10:302013-12-06T18:37:29.276+10:30I'm Reading - Quick Reviews<div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilre4TY8Z_gQ7qqFY6AnhYd7SbvUsfRc64PpfwtwkVHwJhtTwLvtWAaDU6k4eOYdK8E20ZPDmCHzQtUCskVcrPlLuy4PC20QohGChs_MAQ9qo7IUv3FIQJqVtmNz2zU9Vzj6C-RFb5uGVb/s1600/allegiantVR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilre4TY8Z_gQ7qqFY6AnhYd7SbvUsfRc64PpfwtwkVHwJhtTwLvtWAaDU6k4eOYdK8E20ZPDmCHzQtUCskVcrPlLuy4PC20QohGChs_MAQ9qo7IUv3FIQJqVtmNz2zU9Vzj6C-RFb5uGVb/s200/allegiantVR.jpg" width="125" /></a>I loved <i>Divergent</i>. I ordered <i>Allegiant </i>as soon as I knew it was coming out. When I started to read it, I realised I couldn't remember what happened in <i>Insurgent</i>, so I read <i>Insurgent </i>then <i>Divergent</i> in the space of a couple of days. I was disappointed. I would recommend<i> </i>reading <i>Divergent</i> - and just that one. In the second two, I found there was too much going from this place to that other place to that place, for extremely vague reasons.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiDJsghpBdtP5-NsfFHQv1WZphx6oeXaZCvDxKY9oxeNBK_c2zyYFOXDXebDX5-DviWZFaczuzCIHAY6dpP-P2mIz9WNi6iBavKXrdCOwj-NS7U75b7b2Di9ZplUQ1JXCByPcmHEIPVRYu/s1600/burnforburnJHSV.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiDJsghpBdtP5-NsfFHQv1WZphx6oeXaZCvDxKY9oxeNBK_c2zyYFOXDXebDX5-DviWZFaczuzCIHAY6dpP-P2mIz9WNi6iBavKXrdCOwj-NS7U75b7b2Di9ZplUQ1JXCByPcmHEIPVRYu/s200/burnforburnJHSV.jpg" width="131" /></a><i>Burn for Burn </i>was just okay. I like the idea of empowered girls taking their revenge. I didn't love any of the three characters, and the slight supernatural element, although I saw it coming, still seemed to come out of nowhere. I will probably read the sequel, but based on this review, I'm not sure why.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9sppHpqAXobQiUUxL8Tg3vBaZy-PlJlEZI_SGQ7Iqc-a8-z0apZoqrOaZpjwRz0NAe3zk3UBwKbc5EIaaVTtTDl2NQXONMugNfxN3FarWjhPb34ZCeJg-Fr-V8Wa4nTjOUzfip76R5WZf/s1600/lucyvariationsSZ.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9sppHpqAXobQiUUxL8Tg3vBaZy-PlJlEZI_SGQ7Iqc-a8-z0apZoqrOaZpjwRz0NAe3zk3UBwKbc5EIaaVTtTDl2NQXONMugNfxN3FarWjhPb34ZCeJg-Fr-V8Wa4nTjOUzfip76R5WZf/s200/lucyvariationsSZ.jpg" width="130" /></a><i>The Lucy Variations</i> was interesting. I kept googling the music mentioned, and eventually had a classical playlist going the whole time I was reading. The young girl/teacher figure aspect was a bit icky.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOfNaMOlJARl8aA07uLxK2_GSx5e4nykRLaHNI1ElR99N2P5Zl4eZtviQyetz1ZQRy5raJJ9qLtZM6S65wET-PO8pZOZQwK_iBufqhiXV-dVBqW60PPG4YjX0CXS2MPNBG9_sRL2ZjdFUv/s1600/roseunderfireEW.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOfNaMOlJARl8aA07uLxK2_GSx5e4nykRLaHNI1ElR99N2P5Zl4eZtviQyetz1ZQRy5raJJ9qLtZM6S65wET-PO8pZOZQwK_iBufqhiXV-dVBqW60PPG4YjX0CXS2MPNBG9_sRL2ZjdFUv/s200/roseunderfireEW.jpg" width="130" /></a>I raved about <i>Code Name Verity</i> when I read it and forced Luke to read it as well. I loved <i>Rose Under Fire</i> almost as much. Read both of them. End of review.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSMIlmMoyRqanpW1c6oTEf_JEPk_MWe3h3pNanD_mgsdfoOjYVVqz5vBiF3_3B38TTW2z9kgfWQtmV2eRGNBc8GUYpiYDp7z2M6SI0EOeiS4XFpewiaD_tncd5ahb3Gy5cPBAGUPNfP3Ac/s1600/somedaysomedaymaybeLG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSMIlmMoyRqanpW1c6oTEf_JEPk_MWe3h3pNanD_mgsdfoOjYVVqz5vBiF3_3B38TTW2z9kgfWQtmV2eRGNBc8GUYpiYDp7z2M6SI0EOeiS4XFpewiaD_tncd5ahb3Gy5cPBAGUPNfP3Ac/s200/somedaysomedaymaybeLG.jpg" width="135" /></a>I would have enjoyed <i>Someday, Someday, Maybe</i> more if I didn't know it was written by Lauren Graham. I was really distracted by trying to match up events in the book with possible real life events. And I don't like to think about embarrassing things happening to real people - characters in books are fine. But if I wasn't such a Lauren Graham fan, I would probably never have read it. I did enjoy it, but would have liked a chapter at the end explaining which parts were made up and which parts really happened.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim-jedcgWFDciqRVOyoegz_GswdD082rB7mRoZWlbFgUGDp8ADTum4Y6Gx2FqYC3cd8uqwLbDVHnsMZ0HPoI93SBRIHeIk73bCnHb5eoCEp51WsOxgBqwBU0NDp8pcpWfuQ8-NUrQkMDyV/s1600/whiteprincessPG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim-jedcgWFDciqRVOyoegz_GswdD082rB7mRoZWlbFgUGDp8ADTum4Y6Gx2FqYC3cd8uqwLbDVHnsMZ0HPoI93SBRIHeIk73bCnHb5eoCEp51WsOxgBqwBU0NDp8pcpWfuQ8-NUrQkMDyV/s200/whiteprincessPG.jpg" width="132" /></a>I have read almost all of Philippa Gregory's books, and was eagerly awaiting <i>The White Princess.</i> It was okay. I was really interested to read about the person who was, per Wikipedia, the daughter, sister, niece and wife of English monarchs. However, the problem was that Elizabeth of York seemed to be always on the sidelines of the aforementioned English monarchs. She spent a lot of time sitting around having to wait for the outcome of the men's fighting to see what her fate would be. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP_WGUDLVmgOGjSig-qCdtVHptHFxEUN2KHYF6qNysRDnP0yqJ4ahbEExX9pj6HvRWh2UrNxTPt2ar5gtKFcL3yllfYB1bMgo_TMdiDd4kxdjq9MlVgCpe5oyWqzCasZuJfK4crZZmlu6L/s1600/wisforwastedSG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP_WGUDLVmgOGjSig-qCdtVHptHFxEUN2KHYF6qNysRDnP0yqJ4ahbEExX9pj6HvRWh2UrNxTPt2ar5gtKFcL3yllfYB1bMgo_TMdiDd4kxdjq9MlVgCpe5oyWqzCasZuJfK4crZZmlu6L/s200/wisforwastedSG.jpg" width="130" /></a>I have read all of Sue Grafton's Alphabet series, and about halfway through I started to wonder if she would really make it all the way through to Z - or if she even should. I haven't loved the last few, but I did enjoy <i>W is for Wasted</i> - maybe it was just a welcome break from all the teen crap I've been reading lately. I thought it was interesting having another point of view, but it didn't feel much different to Kinsey's usual voice, which was slightly distracting. I appreciate Kinsey's attention to detail (she is a detective, after all), but I am pretty sure that there was way more description than usual or was necessary.</div>
Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10195246920739470934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-48404567148299831482013-09-06T19:37:00.000+09:302013-09-06T19:38:50.131+09:30I'm Reading: Birthday Library BooksFor my birthday this year, I got myself twenty books... from the library.<br />
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I sat down with my ridiculously long list of Books To Read and starting requesting them from my local library. (Most of them were recommendations from <a href="http://foreveryoungadult.com/" target="_blank">Forever Young Adult</a>.) I was really hoping that they'd come in a bit more spread out than they did... Within three days I had this pile sitting on my kitchen table:<br />
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Since I catch public transport to and from work every day now, I am getting through the pile at a pretty good rate. Still a few to go, but books are still trickling in - I have at least one waiting for me at the library right now.<br />
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I highly recommend this as a birthday present.Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10195246920739470934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-61843808459497862222013-07-09T21:14:00.000+09:302013-07-09T21:17:59.457+09:30Review 16: 'White Tiger'Before I start, can I just take a minute to gloat over the fact that Luke quote "<a href="http://booksharingchallenge.blogspot.com.au/2013/06/review-17-under-jolly-roger.html" target="_blank">loved</a>" his last Challenge book? Thanks. Oh and bro, you're probably not up to it yet, but there's a new one coming out later in the year. More Jacky Faber adventures!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnHw3tiyrrIcgZS2BrhWnoQzwj-GCFjRffN_mQZx0taOe6d3PL7T9cANvU3MI1TNx7ggt1YO0qMz41lhTnDBG9lO5jRzTq7UbrZrURf5xaLmZkhLiirJerquT5lVUwh7xN2ksuVBhtNaDw/s1600/whitetigerKC.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnHw3tiyrrIcgZS2BrhWnoQzwj-GCFjRffN_mQZx0taOe6d3PL7T9cANvU3MI1TNx7ggt1YO0qMz41lhTnDBG9lO5jRzTq7UbrZrURf5xaLmZkhLiirJerquT5lVUwh7xN2ksuVBhtNaDw/s1600/whitetigerKC.jpg" /></a>Anyway, <a href="http://booksharingchallenge.blogspot.com.au/2013/06/challenge-16-white-tiger.html" target="_blank"><i>White Tiger</i></a>. I don't think I'd go straight to 'love', but I did enjoy this book. As Luke said, main character named Emma, strong female protagonist, what's not to, um, enjoy?<br />
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I did enjoy all the modern China stuff, which the author clearly knows about from personal experience, as well as the history. Cute little girl, kickarse sidekick dude, fight scenes with girls kicking butt, it had a lot of things I enjoy. It was easy to read, and moved along quite well, building up the bad guys at a nice pace. And who doesn't love a good training montage?<br />
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I have three issues with the book. The first is that I didn't realise the major battle was, you know, the <i>major battle</i>. I would have liked it a bit more spectacular and terrifying. The second was the way her friends kept calling her 'cold blooded'. Now I know (or at least assume) that this is to set up the reveal in one of the later books about her true nature, but come on, no-one says that! A simple, "Dude, that's cold," would have done exactly the same thing and sounded like something someone somewhere might actually have said. And finally, the fact that Emma and her insta-love boyfriend are constantly not having to say anything, they just know, words aren't needed - then stop <i>using words to tell me words aren't needed.</i><br />
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Despite that final paragraph to the contrary, I did enjoy this book, and would read the sequels - if Luke could assure that Emma was not going to continue to annoy the ever-loving shit out of me.Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10195246920739470934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-5611752321671762002013-06-30T17:30:00.002+09:302013-06-30T17:30:50.723+09:30Review 17: 'Under the Jolly Roger'I loved this one, the tale of a young girl, repeatedly getting herself in over her head, but always just managing to just stay afloat (sometimes literally). Her adventures on the high seas at times reminded me of Hornblower (a TV show I used to watch - yes I know it was a book first, shh), though less.. Something.. Maybe just different because the main character was a girl.<br />
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I can't make up my mind about Jaimy. I feel like he's a jerk for leaving her originally, but he did try to write, even though he wasn't getting any letters in return (Curse you Jaimy's mother!). In the end I pretty much decided that he was an okay guy.<br />
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The book I read was partway through the series, and I had to catch up on the history of her life, but the author did well in revealing her past gradually, in a way that felt natural as she recalled the events. I enjoyed the story of her life though found it a bit fantastic at points (yes, I know that it's fiction, but still...) <br />
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I'd recommend this series to a slightly younger (say highschool) audience, or to those enjoy teen books, like Em and I do. I will probably be finding the rest of the series eventually, though I have quite the stack of books to get through before I do.<br />
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This is Luke, signing off. <br />
I look forward to the next challenge.Lukehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01760708446575775280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-71889946856061553982013-06-06T21:41:00.001+09:302013-06-06T21:42:25.629+09:30Challenge 17: a Bloody Jack AdventureFirst of all, I cannot believe Luke <a href="http://booksharingchallenge.blogspot.com.au/2013/06/dnf-review-15-code-name-verity.html" target="_blank">DNF'd</a> on <a href="http://booksharingchallenge.blogspot.com.au/2012/11/challenge-15-code-name-verity.html" target="_blank"><i>Code Name Verity</i></a>, of all books! I really thought it would be right up his alley, and I flew through the reading of it, so I am just astounded that he could leave it unfinished. Especially since - spoiler! - the end is where all the major stuff happens. Sub-challenge: finish it by the end of this year.<br />
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Second, I got a tablet for Christmas. Yay! The main reason I wanted one was to use as an e-book reader, but I only just resumed catching public transport to work, so I haven't really needed it until now. I found out that you can borrow e-books through the SA Libraries service, and while browsing through I came across the Bloody Jack series.<br />
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I had heard of this series before - which begins with <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloody_Jack_%28novel%29" target="_blank">Bloody Jack</a>: being an account of the curious adventures of Mary 'Jacky' Faber, Ship's Boy </i>- but I wasn't sure if it was maybe a bit young for me. But it was free and I wanted to test out my tablet.<br />
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I read the first eight books in under three weeks. (That's a lie; I didn't read the first one because NO ONE HAS IT GRRR.) I even read the books - gasp! - at home, even though books are clearly FOR THE TRAM RIDE. Yep, I smashed them out good, and now am only two books from the end. Oops.<br />
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I took Luke to the (actual physical) library and picked out the one I thought he would like the most out of what was there. <b>Luke: your Challenge is to read one of the Jacky Faber novels, if not all of them.</b><br />
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Third, and finally, I have Some Thoughts:<br />
- The whole Cockney accent thing that is prevalent in the first couple of books is basically non-existent by the later ones, so don't let that put you off if it's not your cup of tea.<br />
- I am not sure what age group I would categorise this as. I would say late primary school, for the pirate themes and fun adventures, but there are frequent references to more adult topics so I would probably have to say late high school. I worry that those people might not be into pirate stories, but then I am 27 so I guess you're never too old.<br />
- I would like to hear people's thoughts on Jaimy, mostly whether or not he is an oppressive patriarchal imbecile who is not worth a minute of Jacky's time. I have to say that the latest book I've read has mostly swung me around to him, but I would still like to hear what you think.Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10195246920739470934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-32294055752080439422013-06-05T23:26:00.002+09:302013-06-06T21:14:03.874+09:30Challenge 16: 'White Tiger'Continuing our recent string of strong female protagonists, I present to you:<br />
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<i><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><u>White Tiger </u></span></span></i></h2>
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<img alt="http://aussiespecficinfocus.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/whitetiger.jpg" class="decoded" height="320" src="http://aussiespecficinfocus.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/whitetiger.jpg" width="196" /> </h2>
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This is another of those books which I had kept seeing on library shelves and thinking to myself "That looks kinda cool, maybe I'll borrow it." And then never doing so. Eventually I did get around to it, and stayed up 'till about 4am. It was quite good. Reasonably action-y, but delving a lot into chinese mythology <i>White Tiger</i> has a very different setting from most of what I have read, and it takes a bit of time to adjust to that. Emma (Woo! and she's Australian, Woo more!), the protagonist, explains the differing culture well.</div>
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And then we get to the part where she learns that the Gods and Demons she loves reading about are real, and has to learn martial arts to defend herself. Yeah, she kinda kicks demon butt.</div>
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If you aren't excited to read it after that, I don't know what more I can say, except: Go read it, you'll see.</div>
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- L</div>
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Lukehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01760708446575775280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-53319674362549212222013-06-05T23:12:00.000+09:302013-06-05T23:12:58.620+09:30DNF Review 15: 'Code Name Verity'I honestly have no idea why I didn't like this book. It sounds cool, is similar (sort of) to other books I love, and should be right up my alley with hot chicks starring. But no. For some reason I just couldn't get into it. I think it was a combination of me not really liking the main characters (even stranger, 'cause I'm usually happy with anything), and the fact that the narrator seemed to ramble on a bit (Again, I'm usually fine with that, this time it just irritated me).<br />
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I feel that I should try to read this again sometime, if only to finish it. The plot was solid and I did enjoy some parts. Maybe I was in a bad mood for a week or something, but when I put it down to read something which I'd been waiting to get for a while, I just didn't pick it back up.<br />
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Sorry for not finishing Code Name Verity Em, I'll try again later.<br />
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- L.Lukehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01760708446575775280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-14937183746163455162012-11-07T18:09:00.002+10:302012-11-07T18:09:28.407+10:30Challenge 15: 'Code Name Verity'Right, it's been a while. Let's get things moving again.<br />
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Luke, your Challenge is... <i>Code Name Verity</i>, by Elizabeth Wein.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgWRPzjSLqe08AGoAJze9p2Wfgwq6wUjwk2_Q2MTQ7nrR1VvUOgysBEYZ7D6McrPodET2MVbaJUnkWomcCLwFH_tJQ2kozqvLBT5Rb_a7RlsduLUlgpLjyMRrlhp2Zziiehco68afwtSZy/s1600/codenameverityEW.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgWRPzjSLqe08AGoAJze9p2Wfgwq6wUjwk2_Q2MTQ7nrR1VvUOgysBEYZ7D6McrPodET2MVbaJUnkWomcCLwFH_tJQ2kozqvLBT5Rb_a7RlsduLUlgpLjyMRrlhp2Zziiehco68afwtSZy/s200/codenameverityEW.jpg" width="133" /></a><b>Why I loved it:</b><br />
Did I mention my thing for strong female protagonists? <i>Code Name Verity</i> give you not one but two - one English fighter pilot crashed in France, and one Scottish captured <b></b>secret agent. They are awesomely brave, and totally sassy - even though there's a war on! It's hard to say much without giving things away, but I think it's a cross between <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomorrow_series" target="_blank"><i>Tomorrow When The War Began</i></a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Number_the_stars" target="_blank"><i>Number The Stars</i></a>.<br />
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<b>Why Luke will like it:</b><br />
Luke was right into Biggles for a while there - this is just the same! Tiger Moths and crash landings and the English Channel and things. The author is a pilot herself, so that should help give this book some cred. And while he may not have read <i>Number the Stars</i>, I'm sure he's enjoyed the Tomorow series.<i></i><br />
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<br />Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10195246920739470934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-52959329230480439582012-11-07T17:56:00.003+10:302012-11-07T17:56:54.875+10:30Review 13: 'The Final Empire'When I went to borrow this book, the librarian who checked it out for me said that she'd read it, but "didn't like where the magic came from." I had no idea what she meant, but when I started the book and figured it out, I actually thought that having the different powers come from different metals was a pretty cool idea - if somewhat problematic if you think too hard about things like earrings and whatever, although that was explained somehow. Either way, I tend not to think too hard about things like that so it was all good.<br />
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I did enjoy this book, although that is not the same as saying I will now go and seek out all the books that claim to be similar. I remember that I finished it and really wanted to know what happened in the next books - without having to actually to read it. I need the TL;DR version.<br />
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There is a lot of religion stuff in there, which I find fascinating if done in the right way. And it was interesting here, in a 'I wonder where it's going with that' sense.<br />
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I don't KNOW why I didn't like this book more. It <i>did</i> have cool characters, it <i>did</i> have strong female protagonists (Luke knows what I like), and I <i>do</i> want to know what happens next. I'm just hard to please, I think.Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10195246920739470934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-64938500076375146582012-10-29T09:47:00.001+10:302012-10-29T09:48:24.283+10:30Review 12: 'The Scorpio Races'<b>'</b><i>Why Luke will like it:</i><i> It is a "horse book".. kind of.</i>'. This left me less than amazingly enthusiastic about this book. What that sentence doesn't tell you is that they are bloodthirsty killer horses that rise up out of the sea. I really like books that centre around legends and mythology, whether they are from Earth, or some fantasy world. I like a bit of romance. I'm a fan of life and death struggles. This book has all of these and yet I had to push myself to read it. I think Emma is partly right when she says most of the books I read are written in fairly basic prose, not in that they are, but in the fact that they don't waste words trying to sound pretty.* <i>The Scorpio Races, </i>I feel, spends too much time sounding pretty and not enough time doing things.That said, I did like how well Stiefvater portrays the emotions of the characters, and Puck's desire to remain on the island and in the house where they grew up.<br />
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So yeah, that's my take on this. I liked the fantasy, the story and themes, but it took too long to get anywhere. It is however, still a good read. You're up now Em.<br />
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- L<br />
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* Amusingly enough, both the books I read immediately before and after this challenge were of the more complex/pretty/descriptive of the books I generally read.Lukehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01760708446575775280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-6342379083826287492012-09-14T19:13:00.000+09:302012-09-14T19:16:10.493+09:30Challenge 14: 'The Scorpio Races'<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBNeyFh3OdhLrlFeLa5OJmVxkPqTGAUHfqiMGxTu4yUHeLqyI6K6pd5KUtvijgFjGTf7M3uV5YQpX9szxMg59mczv8Y-8lo7HV9h-4Xk0VluDx4audq_GbG3eKOj_d0ojyVOfqUMSL77CY/s1600/srtwitter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="52" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBNeyFh3OdhLrlFeLa5OJmVxkPqTGAUHfqiMGxTu4yUHeLqyI6K6pd5KUtvijgFjGTf7M3uV5YQpX9szxMg59mczv8Y-8lo7HV9h-4Xk0VluDx4audq_GbG3eKOj_d0ojyVOfqUMSL77CY/s320/srtwitter.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b>The book: </b><i>The Scorpio Races</i> by Maggie Stiefvater is a very hard book to describe. It's about horse racing, and killer sea horses, and magic and superstition, and living on an island and moving away, and feminism and independence. I said when I finished it a few weeks ago that it was the best book I've read this year, but trying to convince other people to read about killer horses that come out of the ocean was a bit of a hard sell.<br />
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<b>Why I liked it:</b> I loved the phrases that Stiefvater chooses. I loved the connection that Puck and Sean have to the island and to the horses. I loved their relationship and their independence.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGkKcsw1us-q96jJqKdZEnSl8Ll66z6XDwTZ-HpebLwrcq59aV4ZiVxeuboDPKa6iaL81lBQIqA0ZwQqTHnPirVVyqUCLloHJMPBypYd__y_Il3UKCgCT-nzxfn5UkGLmlDGuKQhTHkPZj/s1600/scorpioracesMS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGkKcsw1us-q96jJqKdZEnSl8Ll66z6XDwTZ-HpebLwrcq59aV4ZiVxeuboDPKa6iaL81lBQIqA0ZwQqTHnPirVVyqUCLloHJMPBypYd__y_Il3UKCgCT-nzxfn5UkGLmlDGuKQhTHkPZj/s200/scorpioracesMS.jpg" width="129" /></a></div>
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<b>Why Luke will like it:</b> It is a "horse book"... kind of, but only in the loosest sense of the word, and definitely not a giggly girly horse book. There is a boy main character and a girl one who kicks arse. There are fantasy elements to the story, although it feels very grounded to me, and while they're not like anything he's probably read before, I think that side will appeal to him.<br />
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<b>Why Luke should read it:</b> I may be wrong, but I think most of what Luke reads is written in fairly basic prose. I want him to appreciate language, and the poetry of word choices, and to feel like he just has to re-read or underline or email me a particular turn of phrase because it's just so perfect. Not to say that this is the best ever example of that, or that there aren't other books that could do this (in fact I have another one in mind for a future Challenge), but I think <i>The Scorpio Races</i> is a nice place to start.Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10195246920739470934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-45217214925600477582012-09-06T02:51:00.001+09:302012-09-14T18:55:01.359+09:30Challenge 13: 'The Final Empire'<i>The Final Empire</i> is the first in the Mistborn series, but can be read by itself. It is centred on Vin (female)*, who starts as a street urchin and is revealed to be a Mistborn, and Kelsier (Also a Mistborn), the leader of a group of thieves who plan to topple an oppressive Emperor. The Mistborn can burn some metals ( Iron, Steel, Tin, Pewter, Zinc, Brass, Copper and Bronze)** in their bodies to give themselves magical powers. This is the primary reason I chose this book for the Challenge, the magic in <i>The Final Empire</i> is very different from that in most other books, and is a nice change.<br />
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<a href="http://thefoundingfields.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/final-empire.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Who uses mouseover text these days anyway? Me, apparently." border="0" height="320" src="http://thefoundingfields.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/final-empire.jpg" title="" width="207" /></a></div>
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I read this one a fair while ago, so I can't remember all the details, but I remember liking the way Kelsier's background was slowly revealed, which suited his character (Mysterious, always with a plan, and never revealing all of his motives.). Vin was less complicated, but still had an entertaining history.<br />
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This is your Challenge: Read it, preferably all the way through this time (I'll forgive you DNFing the last book, it did look kinda long). <br />
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- L<br />
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*Hey, look! More female protagonists!<br />
** There's actually more than this, but they're the basics. Each metal does something different.Lukehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01760708446575775280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-45246652604586684402012-09-06T02:45:00.000+09:302012-09-06T02:47:02.092+09:30Review 12: 'Let's Pretend This Never Happened'This book was... Not quite what I expected. Having said that, I'm not entirely sure quite what I expected. Perhaps just for it to be less engaging. I loved that way Jenny Lawson wrote this (and it was half the reason I enjoyed the book), it was very conversational, and did tend to run off onto amusing tangents, but nevertheless worked well to tell her story.<br />
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The rural Texas setting of her childhood, combined with (an admittedly odd) taxidermist father, makes for some great stories, which made me laugh frequently enough to keep reading. Even after she moved the 'Big City' (I can't actually remember where) with her husband Victor, interesting things kept happening<b>*</b> (Should I tell you about that Halloween party.. nah, you can read just the book yourself.).<br />
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I can't say that I'd go out and tell everyone that they should read this, but if it came up in conversation (admittedly unlikely) I'd recommend it. The wit, editors comments to cut down on tangents and occasional bouts of psychosis all contributed to something that was an interesting read, even if it wasn't something that I'd read all the time.<br />
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So yeah, <i>Let's Pretend This Never Happened</i>, good book, I'd recommend it, if you are into this sort of thing, and maybe even if you aren't. And I think there is a sequel coming, which I'd consider reading. Your next Challenge will be up shortly Em.<br />
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- L<br />
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<b>*</b>Totally unfair, I think she stole my share of interesting life events. <br />
<br />Lukehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01760708446575775280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-32676715323380840132012-09-05T18:13:00.003+09:302012-09-05T18:15:49.777+09:30DNF Review 11: 'Insurrection'This is our first Did Not Finish Challenge, which makes me a bit sad. I'm not even sure why I didn't finish, except that book? I'm pretty sure it's not you, it's me.<br />
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Or it might be you. Let's see.<br />
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You aren't really my favourite type of historical fiction. You spend a lot of time sounding like a history book giving a recount of battles or overarching policy. I prefer my historical fiction to be much more personal. Maybe you're trying to tell too much? More details and a shorter timeframe might have been better for me.<br />
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And speaking of personal, maybe I didn't persevere long enough (I read 348 out of 633 pages) but I didn't really connect with your hero. Maybe that's your point, and the whole thing is about how he's going to grow from this kinda boring, kinda self-centered, kinda average guy into this amazing leader of men and whatever. But you didn't make me want to stick around to find out. Plus he was having an affair with a married woman. I don't find that appealing.<br />
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And through no fault of your own, you are a book that I own. It's hard to compete against library books that demand to be read in a specific amount of time. And if <a href="http://foreveryoungadult.com/" target="_blank">FYA</a> stopped recommending books I wanted to request, maybe this wouldn't have been a problem. But I'm sorry book, there are just too many things against you right now.<br />
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I have no doubt that you will be read sometime. Shall I aim for the Christmas holidays? I do want to finish you, because you cover a part of history that I'm not especially familiar with. But for right now, you are holding up this Challenge business, so I have to let you go. See you again.Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10195246920739470934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-17264702880390957952012-06-28T19:30:00.000+09:302012-06-28T19:39:37.864+09:30I'm Reading: Imaginary Internet FriendsThe writers of three of my favourite blogs have recently published books. Yay!<br />
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<b>1. <i>Let's Pretend This Never Happened</i> by Jenny Lawson of <a href="http://thebloggess.com/" target="_blank">The Bloggess.com</a></b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii_udeKhBvg8zcP_-_PKiuf596dTGu3mMpXUteCIQAylTAcrwdoAmQOyjPH7Wu2YxNip41eob_-OP6QWjPt2q5W5iT7NopWvAgA-4ide1Kk8WmzVeU2OSW5VLs4dGwA1rG0t9ElHnCSc0t/s1600/letspretendthisneverhappenedJL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii_udeKhBvg8zcP_-_PKiuf596dTGu3mMpXUteCIQAylTAcrwdoAmQOyjPH7Wu2YxNip41eob_-OP6QWjPt2q5W5iT7NopWvAgA-4ide1Kk8WmzVeU2OSW5VLs4dGwA1rG0t9ElHnCSc0t/s200/letspretendthisneverhappenedJL.jpg" width="132" /></a></div>
I gave this to Luke as his <a href="http://booksharingchallenge.blogspot.com.au/2012/06/challenge-12-lets-pretend-this-never.html" target="_blank">latest Challenge</a>, and so I haven't finished it myself yet. I can't do a proper review of it, really, except to say that Jenny is hilarious. She seems funny and kind and she is capable of rallying the internet to any cause. I got to meet her at BlogHer08, where we hung out in a bathroom for a bit.<br />
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I read a review of this book which stated that it was better as a blog. Which ... yeah, I don't disagree, but I also think <i>all</i> memoirs are kind of blog-like. That's the whole point. But this is like bonus behind-the-blog-scenes material. So for people who would like a Bloggess blog to carry around with them, buy this book.<br />
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<b>2. <i>In Dreams</i> by Jenn Sterling of <a href="http://blogging.jennster.com/" target="_blank">Jennster.com</a></b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuyhgdiiYHASuvPL1esnEzn3M_L-8KyZDMKBYfABaH_mAvCgM2OQOT0g2aIUjBgbGKDpBYhtarba9y8gYbV7L4Sehgoiv-I6Xuy_46PIUMnyYq0sl3m89opRxSiihwZssi_6DsAxpmXIpn/s1600/indreamsJS.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuyhgdiiYHASuvPL1esnEzn3M_L-8KyZDMKBYfABaH_mAvCgM2OQOT0g2aIUjBgbGKDpBYhtarba9y8gYbV7L4Sehgoiv-I6Xuy_46PIUMnyYq0sl3m89opRxSiihwZssi_6DsAxpmXIpn/s200/indreamsJS.jpg" width="137" /></a>This was the first book that I have read on the Kindle app on my phone. I am catching trains a lot these days and I liked not having to bring a big heavy book along. This did mean that my reading of the book was quite broken up, but I think I got quite good at remembering where I was up to by reading the last page I'd read to. If I had a tablet now, I might read a <i>lot</i> more on the Kindle.<br />
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I have read Jennster for ages. Definitely before 2008, because I got to dance with her at BlogHer08 which was awesome. So when she decided to write a book (series) I was of course going to check it out. Who would have thought that <i>real people</i> could write books?<br />
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And since <i>real people</i> write books, it means that <i>real people</i> are going to read comments about them. I know that this book was criticised for the writing style, and that Jennster then put a lot of work into making it a better piece of writing. I deliberately didn't update my Kindle copy as I was halfway through reading it at the time, and was interested to see the 'first edition'. And yeah, shifting points of view from paragraph to paragraph was confusing, but once I realised that it was the style of the book, it didn't annoy me. But! Despite the fact that I (was forced to) put it down fairly regularly, I was always like "Oh yeah, <i>that's</i> what was happening. Yay" when I started reading again. Apart from the unpolished writing (which, I do actually <i>like</i> when a writer has a particular <i>style</i> so being distinctive is not necessarily a bad thing), the <i>story</i> was interesting and compelling (and full of hot guys!).<br />
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<b>3. <i>Messy </i>by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan of <a href="http://gofugyourself.com/">GoFugYourself.com</a></b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFDk19tfYfUTw0itxV0E8pw83Y02j9sQuOkk7Hf_KijV6tgstPWAxsA7FuSp2AUKkcXAM5JYiUIWYzcBh3J4EBpIz8l8U-DmQADwieroxmbS8ExhKo7MZTO6KikP1GRJBmW8YIJrcSu5hv/s1600/messyGFY.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFDk19tfYfUTw0itxV0E8pw83Y02j9sQuOkk7Hf_KijV6tgstPWAxsA7FuSp2AUKkcXAM5JYiUIWYzcBh3J4EBpIz8l8U-DmQADwieroxmbS8ExhKo7MZTO6KikP1GRJBmW8YIJrcSu5hv/s200/messyGFY.jpg" width="131" /></a>Sadly, the Fug Girls were not at BlogHer08 (or if they were, I missed them) or we could have made it a hat-trick.<br />
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<i>Messy </i>follows the Fug Girls' debut YA novel, <i>Spoiled</i>, which I forced the library I worked at at the time to purchase from overseas <i>immediately</i>, because it took a ridiculously long to be available in Australia. But now I work at a bookshop, and <i>I</i> have the buying power, so <i>Messy</i> was mine! The covers of both are awesome, although I could have done with a little splash of green on <i>Messy</i>'s.<br />
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These books are just straight up fun. They are full of pop-culture references, absolutely chockers. Sometimes I felt like a reference was just put in to meet some kind of quota, but most of the time it was either fine or awesomely relatable.<br />
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There are also a bunch of things that feel like shout-outs to the readers of GFY, little jokes that have been standing themes on the blog for ages. This is awesome to have in a book, because it makes me feel like a special little reader who knows the secret words. PLUS, the girls reply when you tweet them how much you want to <strike>stalk them</strike> read their books. Famous people replied to me OMGawesome.<br />
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As I was reading, there were a bunch of lines that I wanted to remember, so I could tell you about how they had all these cool lines. I really should've had a bunch of post-its next to me, because I have now forgotten most of them. My favourite: "There is no such thing as a blog emergency." HAHAHA DISCONCUR.<br />
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<i><b>So, in conclusion:</b></i><br />
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Blog writers becoming book writers is awesome.<br />
I will support people I "know" by buying their books.<br />
More blog-book authors need to include Australia on their book tours. Work on that for the next ones, thanks girls.<i><b> </b></i>Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10195246920739470934noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-48475987906303057592012-06-11T18:15:00.002+09:302012-06-11T18:17:36.461+09:30Challenge 12: 'Let's Pretend This Never Happened'<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXGNYAm_OW6EYl8YIcFush4DwmgNLUvteUstV4I6-BY8cYPFdKPPyvt9f3yabvIk4yqvVP9IPzaz2qj0uIDWHKDawwbjxZ5UADRBzHDWbUS3kfhvuxG7DF1QqjEXAvhK8LBJBwwfBmnojk/s1600/letspretendthisneverhappenedJL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXGNYAm_OW6EYl8YIcFush4DwmgNLUvteUstV4I6-BY8cYPFdKPPyvt9f3yabvIk4yqvVP9IPzaz2qj0uIDWHKDawwbjxZ5UADRBzHDWbUS3kfhvuxG7DF1QqjEXAvhK8LBJBwwfBmnojk/s200/letspretendthisneverhappenedJL.jpg" width="200" /></a>I'm not sure when I first started reading <a href="http://thebloggess.com/" target="_blank">the Bloggess</a>, but it was definitely before BlogHer08, because <i>that</i> was when I got to meet her and hang out in a bathroom with her and hear her read a hilarious post. I made Luke watch <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bsEBj8ZdPk4" target="_blank">this</a> when I got back, so this is not quite <i>his</i> first encounter with the Bloggess either.<br />
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Luke, your Challenge: read <i>Let's Pretend This Never Happened (A Mostly True Memoir)</i> by Jenny Lawson aka The Bloggess.<br />
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PS: I went to order the book at the bookstore where I work, thinking I would add it to system and order some bonus copies for us to sell but guess what? We already had it in stock. Like, a lot. I was kind of insulted that I wasn't the sole person in Adelaide aware of the awesomeness of the Bloggess, but on the other hand YAY, Bloggess books for everyone!Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10195246920739470934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-17575504782148602462012-06-02T05:20:00.002+09:302012-06-11T18:07:39.741+09:30Review 10: 'A is for Alibi'This has always been one of those books that sat on my parents bookshelf and I thought to myself "At some point I might try that series." It just never happened. <i>A is for Alibi</i> is a Detective/Crime novel set in California (well, mostly) and revolves around Kinsey Millhone, a tough, gun-toting PI. For her first case in the "Alphabet Mysteries", Kinsey is hired by Nikki Fife, who has just been released from prison after doing 8 years for the murder of her husband, to find the real killer. <br />
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The first thing that stuck me about this book was how it was structured. It really manages to capture the way Kinsey thinks about the world, everything was dry and precise. Few books I have read, even in this genre, manage to capture the essence of the characters so fully. <i>A is for Alibi</i> also surprised me with how fast paced it was, Kinsey followed leads across the state, meeting contacts and gathering information almost nonstop, gradually bringing together the pieces of the puzzle. A number of times she arrives just to late, to find that a crucial witness murdered, or files missing, and you know someone is one step ahead (At this point I figured out whodunit, although I almost changed my mind later, good storytelling there).<br />
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While I did enjoy this book, I'm not sure if I would read more, for a number of reasons:<br />
<ol>
<li>While the writing style was novel, well executed, and even fitted the book well; it did at times irritate me, although I'm not entirely sure why. </li>
<li>There just weren't enough explosions. (Or any Magic)</li>
<li>I don't like starting a series which I seriously doubt I'll ever [get to] finish. I've heard that the later books in the series aren't quite as good, and let alone that, I dont really want to read 24 books about a character with whom I have no real emotional attachment (Oh yeah, I found Kinsey hard to relate to).</li>
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So yeah.. To sum up: <i>A is for Alibi</i> is a good book, written well; but isn't really my favourite type of read, so I probably wont come back to it in the near future.. later however, I may be running out of things to read.Lukehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01760708446575775280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-81638190343529792912012-05-15T17:32:00.000+09:302012-06-28T19:30:47.120+09:30I'm Reading: 'A Game Of Thrones'<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmleJL_C6K-zp5x8LRuTqRc53hqaSWpgl3Hy1Tob-J0kfjwdesVG1EdH1wLkPucP9IFPMgnUokUT8O6BPi-1SxhM9LyW9II1Z4gh70lcevMQSXBMkU00K5iEYpJ0wM8qK_O_fb8JrKnSXx/s1600/agameofthronesGRRM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmleJL_C6K-zp5x8LRuTqRc53hqaSWpgl3Hy1Tob-J0kfjwdesVG1EdH1wLkPucP9IFPMgnUokUT8O6BPi-1SxhM9LyW9II1Z4gh70lcevMQSXBMkU00K5iEYpJ0wM8qK_O_fb8JrKnSXx/s320/agameofthronesGRRM.jpg" width="198" /></a></div>
I requested <i>A Game Of Thrones</i> from my library approximately a bajillion years ago. Then it came in for me, and I decided it was too much of a big undertaking (have you seen how thick this book is? Not to mention the many many books after it) so I gave it back, and requested it again. I think this may have happened a couple of times, and all the while I was itching to watch the TV show, but couldn't (COULD. NOT.) because I hadn't read the book.<br />
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It came in again recently (well, in the recent past. See: OMG SO LONG), and I started reading it, even though I was in the middle of my <a href="http://booksharingchallenge.blogspot.com.au/2012/04/challenge-11-insurrection.html" target="_blank">Challenge book</a>. Bad idea, what was I thinking, etc.<br />
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In the first place, my Challenge book was obviously not going to read itself. And secondly, really not a good plan to read two books at the same time that feel the need to include family trees and/or maps in the front, and feature royal houses and multiple battles and things like that. I got a little confused, especially as wolves figure prominently at the start of each book and wait doesn't the wolf mean this? Or was it that? I soon forgot about my Challenge book's things, though (yay?), so it was all good.<br />
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I really enjoyed it. Even though it was SEVEN BAJILLION PAGES LONG and felt like it took me a trillion years to get though it, it felt like a quick read - as I was reading it. Does that make sense? I felt like I'd fly through a chapter or a few chapters, and then I'd look and there would still be a million chapters to go.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5wGSMQTZ_a8x_kwbs_pnxmxtAQRPOAo54iGCv46kLzeayyVofqGv1-XPl7OHSTiaym-8POfLUv5ItBHS85I6ByBO4iLLPQYbus7gH0OVYFtpuQ-3zoPkHRAGM51an3EHjAKWVJUwXjkjD/s1600/agotfb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5wGSMQTZ_a8x_kwbs_pnxmxtAQRPOAo54iGCv46kLzeayyVofqGv1-XPl7OHSTiaym-8POfLUv5ItBHS85I6ByBO4iLLPQYbus7gH0OVYFtpuQ-3zoPkHRAGM51an3EHjAKWVJUwXjkjD/s320/agotfb.jpg" width="320" /></a>Since chapters are dedicated to specific characters, I didn't find it hard to keep them straight (even with my other-book issues). I also found it quite easy to put down, but I always wanted to pick it up again. And turns out there is not much need to keep people straight, as most of them will be dead by the end of the series (according to Facebook friends who clearly have more time/dedication than I do).<br />
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Also, <i>Game of Thrones</i> brings people together! I was at a party last weekend with different 'groups' like work friends and school friends and things, but at one point, there was a massive group comprised of people from all these groups, all going on about <i>A/Game Of Thrones</i> and then I ran away because ARGH SPOILERS. <br />
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Recommended! (Or you could just watch the TV show.)Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10195246920739470934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-78990833525978338152012-05-09T19:32:00.000+09:302012-06-28T19:33:39.793+09:30I'm Reading: Historical FictionAs Luke so kindly <a href="http://booksharingchallenge.blogspot.com/2011/05/in-begining.html">pointed out</a>, yes it has taken me a while to start on the book he generously lent me. But it's not like I didn't have other things to do! (I've started now. And hey, I <span style="font-style: italic;">still</span> haven't finished the Women Of Marvel graphic novel I'm supposed to be reading to make my boyfriend think I'm interested in what <span style="font-style: italic;">he</span>'s interested in. Bros before bfs.)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9rQpxUA3YmDUcnHU7sIoLmOJ1LuJfEoek0E_0v7Vz2aEem_VsIjwUYPMGJYGfD5UJUq4CW2prBK-cR35fb3PiDx__4g-ll6Lz_VgXCsXak9xATF5cEumqppu0nS97J8UIfbNJb3YDIHY/s1600/thewhitequeenPG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9rQpxUA3YmDUcnHU7sIoLmOJ1LuJfEoek0E_0v7Vz2aEem_VsIjwUYPMGJYGfD5UJUq4CW2prBK-cR35fb3PiDx__4g-ll6Lz_VgXCsXak9xATF5cEumqppu0nS97J8UIfbNJb3YDIHY/s200/thewhitequeenPG.jpg" width="133" /></a>Over Easter, there was a massive book sale happening at the Showgrounds. (I suspect Borders may have had something to do with it.) It had zero books by authors I read but I still came away with five or so books. (For $20. Bargain.) The only one I've read so far was Philippa Gregory's <span style="font-style: italic;">The White Queen.</span><br />
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The part where Luke may have a problem: I also borrowed from the library and read <span style="font-style: italic;">The Queen's Fool</span> and now have <span style="font-style: italic;">The Red Queen </span>waiting for me.<br />
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I love finding an author others have (presumably) known about for ages. Did you know, there's this author, right? And she writes about, like, kings and queens and stuff? From the olden days? It's awesome!<br />
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I knew the name from seeing the movie <span style="font-style: italic;">The Other Boleyn Girl</span>, but turns out she's written a ton of other books, and they follow the royals all the way through the 15th and 16th Centuries. It's like she knew we wouldn't be paying attention in high school History class (supposing they taught us Tudor history, which they didn't). When this semester (or this month's challenge!) is over, I will be getting right into all her books, in order, and possibly into <span style="font-style: italic;">The Tudors</span> on TV. And I plan to draw a Tudor family tree all over my bedroom wall so I can keep all the Henrys and Elizabeths straight.<br />
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Since this is a newly-discovered genre for me, anyone have any recommendations of other authors for me? (Lord knows I don't have enough to read!)Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10195246920739470934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-18852276803355477502012-04-18T17:44:00.002+09:302012-04-18T17:59:37.545+09:30Challenge 11: 'Insurrection'Your Challenge, for the first time, is a book which I haven't read. I got you this book for Christmas, mainly because you had been reading other books set (more or less) around the same time. The book is <span style="font-style: italic;">Insurrection</span>, by Robyn Young.<br /><br /><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/ba/Robyn_Young_-_Insurrection.jpg/200px-Robyn_Young_-_Insurrection.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 307px;" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/ba/Robyn_Young_-_Insurrection.jpg/200px-Robyn_Young_-_Insurrection.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>The book, from what I remember, is centred around the power struggle caused by the murder of the Scottish King in 1286. As the Scottish Lords vie for the throne the King of England, Edward, is making his own plans, but "a young squire will rise to defy England's greatest king. His name is Robert the Bruce".<br /><br />One other reason why I bought this book (and why I give challenges) is that this is the first book in a trilogy. Giving the first book in a series will not only give the recipient something else to read if they like it, but gives me something to buy them at future Christmases. So yeah... let me know what you think so I can buy you a birthday present ;)Lukehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01760708446575775280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-13242289493242986892012-03-31T12:47:00.000+10:302012-03-31T12:47:00.042+10:30Challenge 10: 'A Is For Alibi'When I was thirteen, my family took a very long train trip, and I had the worst ear infection I've had in my whole entire life. I also read my first Sue Grafton book. On the same trip, I also read my first Janet Evanovich, so that year was really the beginning of my detective fiction reading.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3RhwINIEtfGX9MxsKowErPDbS0eloicacCVGZGzWPcPnWiWc5gruHR3T_9XoiM_dcWqXtAOvril7Q5daw0HIomY5fY4bRvNWDA8RXpHll0YiRMnYNGYaS_v2ucKnUlo4jsCJx-_m1s4rW/s1600/aisforalibiSG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3RhwINIEtfGX9MxsKowErPDbS0eloicacCVGZGzWPcPnWiWc5gruHR3T_9XoiM_dcWqXtAOvril7Q5daw0HIomY5fY4bRvNWDA8RXpHll0YiRMnYNGYaS_v2ucKnUlo4jsCJx-_m1s4rW/s200/aisforalibiSG.jpg" width="124" /></a>Luke, your Challenge is the first in Sue Grafton's Kinsey Millhone series, which if you ask me really went downhill after a while and also this is why you don't start theming your titles if you're not going to be able see it through, <i>A Is For Alibi</i>.<br />
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As I said to Luke, I don't think he will enjoy the Challenge when he hears it, but I think he will enjoy the book. There are bad guys, shooting, swearing, and um other things guys like.Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10195246920739470934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-80460396911547617532012-03-24T12:46:00.000+10:302012-03-24T12:47:16.293+10:30New Bookshelves<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY18Ix1KEdd0OHrhSu1bRf85sJSIZu0tiG7VrS9sYhCgD1rjL6rEKwvjTrzEXJLtlqV3zTzp5O3JNx62IO4-ynl_YQal1pcemXxDmSN4OCgEdryKJM9Qxpuy_0hJ044prRjxBDvs_cP7H8/s1600/DSC_0011.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY18Ix1KEdd0OHrhSu1bRf85sJSIZu0tiG7VrS9sYhCgD1rjL6rEKwvjTrzEXJLtlqV3zTzp5O3JNx62IO4-ynl_YQal1pcemXxDmSN4OCgEdryKJM9Qxpuy_0hJ044prRjxBDvs_cP7H8/s640/DSC_0011.JPG" width="360" /></a></div>
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When I moved into my new house, I decided to treat myself to some new bookshelves. I was thinking of buying them in a set of three, but I think two is enough... for now.Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10195246920739470934noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-31341288953869994982012-03-19T20:18:00.003+10:302012-03-19T20:29:19.143+10:30Review 9: 'The Ambassador's Mission'For the first time I went into this challenge full of enthusiasm. The first few chapters of the book were a tad confusing as they referenced an earlier series which I haven't read (Will be getting onto them now though). I gradually figured out what had happened, and from there on in I enjoyed the book immensely. I think I might have gotten more out of it if I had read the books before it, but they really aren't necessary.<br /><br />I can't really compare this book too much to <span style="font-style: italic;">The Way of Shadows</span>, as they are fairly different; <span style="font-style: italic;">TWoS</span> is far more action-y, whereas <span style="font-style: italic;">The Ambassador's Mission</span> focuses more on the politics (Well hello, 'Ambassador's Mission'?) and intrigue.<br /><br />I would definitely read this again, probably after I have read the earlier series. After which I'd read the books which immediately follow it - as much as I want to go straight to them (Cliffhangers #rage) - I think I'd enjoy them more after I know all of the back story.Lukehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01760708446575775280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7241339079569033171.post-83923729393059444692012-03-19T08:19:00.000+10:302012-03-19T08:24:28.464+10:30Review 8: 'Hunting Party'This is definitely the most satisfying round yet. <a href="http://booksharingchallenge.blogspot.com.au/2011/12/challenge-8-hunting-party.html" target="_blank">Two</a> <a href="http://booksharingchallenge.blogspot.com.au/2012/02/challenge-9-ambassadors-mission.html" target="_blank">Challenges</a>, two happy customers.<br />
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I enjoyed <i>Hunting Party</i>.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
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Heris Serrano was an officer born of a long line of officers ... until a treacherous superior officer forced her to resign her commission. ... Heris finds employment as 'Captain' of an interstellar luxury yacht. Being a rich old woman's chauffeur isn't quite the same as captaining a Fleet cruiser ... Or so she thinks.</blockquote>
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I had read the Elizabeth Moon/Anne McCaffrey novel <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sassinak" target="_blank"><i>Sassinak</i></a>, and thought this would be quite similar. The writing style was, but this book, I thought, wasn't sure what it was supposed to be - it starts out all spacey and catching criminals and the like, quickly becomes a book about fox-hunting, before turning into a cross between <i>Survivor</i> and <i>Swallows and Amazons.</i><br />
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I do feel like this book was quite a set-up for the rest of series, which is hopefully set in space, chasing bad guys. I will read another one to find out - especially as the only copy I could get my hands on was a three-title omnibus edition.<br />
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Oh and also, character names should begin with different letters. I'm easily confused.<br />
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<br />Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10195246920739470934noreply@blogger.com0