Entertainment Update
We just finished watching the second season of Leverage - and we are on pins and needles for the next season to come out on DVD. Its such a damn good show. The season finale was very good - not only because it finally had both Sophie and Nate admitting that they actually needed each other, but the dynamic between Nate and Sterling is always interesting (and both actors are fantastic). It was particular gratifying to see both Nate and Sterling come to completely different places in their realizations over what Nate is.
Now, if they would only go back to the Parker/Harder dynamic.....I am hoping they do in season 3.
Anway, I just have some reading news to catch up. Then its back to the exciting world of homework! Wheeeee!
Recently Read:
84.
The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This book is a pretty good read for fans of his Percy series, or for fans of Greek and Roman mythology in general. As the book opens, Jason finds himself on a bus full of kids from a Wilderness School, all who clearly know him, but he is painfully aware that he has no clear idea who he is or what he is doing there.
As the series progresses, a pattern rather familiar to those that have read the Percy series emerges - an attack by monstrous foes; saving by a satyr, and the revealing of of his god-heritage (along with his friends, who of course, go on the Oracle-reveled quest with him). Since the book opens up a mere few months after the Percy series ends, many familiar faces appear in this series as well - and they are well woven in, as opposed to making jarring pops in at out.
Despite some of the similarities with the Percy series, The Lost Hero provides enough unique twists and turns along the way to keep readers interested. The blending of Roman and Greek mythologies along the way provide an interesting layer of reading as well, but might be a bit confusing for younger readers.
85.
Kill the Dead by Richard Kadrey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Well, this book certainly covered a great bit of territory - zombies (multiple types!), porn stars, Slims' parentage, and what it means to be human.
Oh, and lets not forget lots of Lucifer face time - including his future. Yes, that Lucifer.
It was, perhaps not surprisingly, a bit darker then the first book. But still, a great read.
86.
Side Jobs: Stories From the Dresden Files by Jim Butcher
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Butchers' short stories are just as fun to read as his full novels, and this book provides a good range of his writing - some of the stories are action packed, good fillers between the novels (his latest, Aftermath, is a good example). But most have a great sense of humor that runs through them.
All of them are well worth reading for any Dresden fan
87.
Ghost of a Chance by Simon R. Green
My rating: 1 of 5 stars
With this book, Simon R Green has proven, without a doubt, that he is unable to right contemporary urban fantasy that does not extend beyond his Nightside and Hidden Secrets series. I applaud him for trying to create a story line that is distinctly more realistic then the above...but in the end, he resorts back to his same horrors that lurk in his other better known, and much better written series.
The concept has some potential, I admit. But the characters lacked any development and were horribly flat; the dialogue could have been lifted from any of his earlier books; and the dangers they faced were...well, see the above.
Simon, you hit an area you can't write in - please stick to your other series. Or go back to straight fantasy. Just don't inflict this on us again.
88.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Twilight by Brad Meltzer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Wow. This was...interesting. To say the least. I don't think too many people can say they honestly F&%^$# their way into creating another universe. But you know, Buffy has always been special that way.
So, let me see if I can sum this up, because I think I have the story outlined thus far:
*Zander is now with Dawn. Buffy has came to terms with it. Willow had an "thank goddess they finally realized they were in love with each other" moment
*Twilight had launched an all-out military war against the Slayers, who had given up all their magics to stop the same from following them. The war was not going well. Then they called up three very large primordial goddess up to kick ass. They didn't really stop to think if the said goddess would listen to anyone.
*Riley was serving as a double agent in Twilight to help the slayers.
*Oh, by the way, this was all happening in Nepal. With Oz and his wife and baby. Cuz Oz rocks it.
*Powers came back to everyone. Somehow. Buffy ended up with superpowers. Well, super super strength and speed and...she can fly. Dude. And so, her and Willow kicked the goddesses back underground.
*Eventually, Buffy figured out that she was not gaining superpowers as much as she was gaining the powers of all the dead Slayers. Minor freakout.
*Then she got in a fight with the major player of Twilight. Who was....
**drumroll*
*Angel
*Who was doing this all - starting a worldwide war against all the slayers so that Buffy could gain superpowers because if she reached supernovaSlayer level then somehow the two of them could create a Twilight/new world era of their own. (See Twilight is a heaven type place!)
*Which they proceeded to do. By having sex. By flying. Through a mountain. And causing major weather pattern disruptions. And earthquakes.
*But when they created their twilight, they created hell in their reality by allowing *all* the demons to come through.
*Buffy was a little pissed Angel left that part out. So she went back to kick demon ass. Angel went with her.
*In the middle of the battle, Spike showed up to save the day.
And so, vol 7 ended. You bastards! Right when Spike showed up!
89.
All Clear by Connie Willis
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
This book suffered terribly from the "muddle in the middle" syndrome. The beginning was ok, the end wrapped up everything up fairly nicely; and middle was a fairly painful mess of competing story lines and way too much going back and forth about time travel theory that was all pretty badly explained -- or just simply whined about. The end saved it some what, but only if I tried really hard to forgot a large part of the rest of it.
It was a frustrating read because the first book was so well written.
90.
Serenity: The Shepherd's Tale by Joss Whedon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This was well worth the wait - while the tale in some ways is sparse, it provides just enough back story to solve the big question - what did Book do before he became a Shephard?
The set up of the book - starting from when the ship attacks Haven and going backwards to the earliest years of his life - allows the story to unfold for the reader slowly, with each page providing a new surprise.
I have always thought that Book was one of the more interesting characters in the Firefly universe - not only because he provided a moral compass without often bringing a higher power into the equation to the Serenity crew - but because he was written with clear caring and thoughtfulness by a man who is a stated atheist. It takes talent. It was never a secret in the Firefly universe that Book, in his past, had some sort of strong role in the Alliance - his knowledge of Alliance operations, and the clearance levels his name had when he chose to use it - made that very clear. But I never, ever expected that his role had been that of a rebel spy as an Alliance captain. That was frankly - a very brilliant twist that I did not see coming. And only in the Whedon universe do I think find it plausible that someone would find their spiritual turnabout in a bowl of soup.
View all my reviews
Now, if they would only go back to the Parker/Harder dynamic.....I am hoping they do in season 3.
Anway, I just have some reading news to catch up. Then its back to the exciting world of homework! Wheeeee!
Recently Read:
84.
The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This book is a pretty good read for fans of his Percy series, or for fans of Greek and Roman mythology in general. As the book opens, Jason finds himself on a bus full of kids from a Wilderness School, all who clearly know him, but he is painfully aware that he has no clear idea who he is or what he is doing there.
As the series progresses, a pattern rather familiar to those that have read the Percy series emerges - an attack by monstrous foes; saving by a satyr, and the revealing of of his god-heritage (along with his friends, who of course, go on the Oracle-reveled quest with him). Since the book opens up a mere few months after the Percy series ends, many familiar faces appear in this series as well - and they are well woven in, as opposed to making jarring pops in at out.
Despite some of the similarities with the Percy series, The Lost Hero provides enough unique twists and turns along the way to keep readers interested. The blending of Roman and Greek mythologies along the way provide an interesting layer of reading as well, but might be a bit confusing for younger readers.
85.
Kill the Dead by Richard Kadrey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Well, this book certainly covered a great bit of territory - zombies (multiple types!), porn stars, Slims' parentage, and what it means to be human.
Oh, and lets not forget lots of Lucifer face time - including his future. Yes, that Lucifer.
It was, perhaps not surprisingly, a bit darker then the first book. But still, a great read.
86.
Side Jobs: Stories From the Dresden Files by Jim Butcher
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Butchers' short stories are just as fun to read as his full novels, and this book provides a good range of his writing - some of the stories are action packed, good fillers between the novels (his latest, Aftermath, is a good example). But most have a great sense of humor that runs through them.
All of them are well worth reading for any Dresden fan
87.
Ghost of a Chance by Simon R. Green
My rating: 1 of 5 stars
With this book, Simon R Green has proven, without a doubt, that he is unable to right contemporary urban fantasy that does not extend beyond his Nightside and Hidden Secrets series. I applaud him for trying to create a story line that is distinctly more realistic then the above...but in the end, he resorts back to his same horrors that lurk in his other better known, and much better written series.
The concept has some potential, I admit. But the characters lacked any development and were horribly flat; the dialogue could have been lifted from any of his earlier books; and the dangers they faced were...well, see the above.
Simon, you hit an area you can't write in - please stick to your other series. Or go back to straight fantasy. Just don't inflict this on us again.
88.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Twilight by Brad Meltzer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Wow. This was...interesting. To say the least. I don't think too many people can say they honestly F&%^$# their way into creating another universe. But you know, Buffy has always been special that way.
So, let me see if I can sum this up, because I think I have the story outlined thus far:
*Zander is now with Dawn. Buffy has came to terms with it. Willow had an "thank goddess they finally realized they were in love with each other" moment
*Twilight had launched an all-out military war against the Slayers, who had given up all their magics to stop the same from following them. The war was not going well. Then they called up three very large primordial goddess up to kick ass. They didn't really stop to think if the said goddess would listen to anyone.
*Riley was serving as a double agent in Twilight to help the slayers.
*Oh, by the way, this was all happening in Nepal. With Oz and his wife and baby. Cuz Oz rocks it.
*Powers came back to everyone. Somehow. Buffy ended up with superpowers. Well, super super strength and speed and...she can fly. Dude. And so, her and Willow kicked the goddesses back underground.
*Eventually, Buffy figured out that she was not gaining superpowers as much as she was gaining the powers of all the dead Slayers. Minor freakout.
*Then she got in a fight with the major player of Twilight. Who was....
**drumroll*
*Angel
*Who was doing this all - starting a worldwide war against all the slayers so that Buffy could gain superpowers because if she reached supernovaSlayer level then somehow the two of them could create a Twilight/new world era of their own. (See Twilight is a heaven type place!)
*Which they proceeded to do. By having sex. By flying. Through a mountain. And causing major weather pattern disruptions. And earthquakes.
*But when they created their twilight, they created hell in their reality by allowing *all* the demons to come through.
*Buffy was a little pissed Angel left that part out. So she went back to kick demon ass. Angel went with her.
*In the middle of the battle, Spike showed up to save the day.
And so, vol 7 ended. You bastards! Right when Spike showed up!
89.
All Clear by Connie Willis
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
This book suffered terribly from the "muddle in the middle" syndrome. The beginning was ok, the end wrapped up everything up fairly nicely; and middle was a fairly painful mess of competing story lines and way too much going back and forth about time travel theory that was all pretty badly explained -- or just simply whined about. The end saved it some what, but only if I tried really hard to forgot a large part of the rest of it.
It was a frustrating read because the first book was so well written.
90.
Serenity: The Shepherd's Tale by Joss Whedon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This was well worth the wait - while the tale in some ways is sparse, it provides just enough back story to solve the big question - what did Book do before he became a Shephard?
The set up of the book - starting from when the ship attacks Haven and going backwards to the earliest years of his life - allows the story to unfold for the reader slowly, with each page providing a new surprise.
I have always thought that Book was one of the more interesting characters in the Firefly universe - not only because he provided a moral compass without often bringing a higher power into the equation to the Serenity crew - but because he was written with clear caring and thoughtfulness by a man who is a stated atheist. It takes talent. It was never a secret in the Firefly universe that Book, in his past, had some sort of strong role in the Alliance - his knowledge of Alliance operations, and the clearance levels his name had when he chose to use it - made that very clear. But I never, ever expected that his role had been that of a rebel spy as an Alliance captain. That was frankly - a very brilliant twist that I did not see coming. And only in the Whedon universe do I think find it plausible that someone would find their spiritual turnabout in a bowl of soup.
View all my reviews