Wednesday Reading Meme
What are you currently reading?
The Black Moth by Georgette Heyer: Every author has to have a first book? Sometimes when they're teenagers.
7 Seeds vol 20 by Yumi Tamura. Almost caught up with scans! And have possibly already read the best (or at least, most entertaining) part of this manga.
Which is Ango and Ryo encountering Summer B.
Violent Angstmuffin Duo: What is this? Human sounds! Clearly enemeies!
Semimaru and Natsu: We are practicing our Manzai act! We are clearly clueless dorks!
Violent Angstmuffin Duo: CLEARLY THIS IS A TRAP.
Chimaki: I am standing here peacefully and quietly grinding something in a bowl.
Violent Angstmuffin Duo: CLEARLY THIS IS A TRAP. MAYBE HE IS MAKING POISON.
Matsuri: Here I am, gleefully sliding down the rocks on this wooden board.
Violent Angstmuffin Duo: CLEARLY THIS IS A TRAP.
Botan and Hotaru: Here we are, happily swimming.
Botan: I think I'll whip my shirt off and make Arashi blush.
Arashi: EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK! Please put in back on!
Ryo: Ango, this trap is obviously for you.
Ango: Leave me alllloooonnnnneeeee!
Matsuri: OH NOES! I SLIPPED!
Ango: Clearly this is phase two of the trap! But cannot let girl smash face against rocks!
Ryo: ANGO! Can't you tell this is also part of the trap?! But also cannot let girl smash face against rocks.
Matsuri: OMG HOT GUYS JUST FOR ME! I MUST GO TELL NATSU! NAT-CHAN! NAT-CHAN! THERE ARE ACTUALLY HOT ANGSTY GUYS HERE NOW! JUST FOR ME! I MEAN US!
Arashi, Semimaru and Chimaki: I feel like I was just cruelly stabbed in the heart, but I'm not sure why.
And then Ango and Ryo's reactions to learning Arashi is Hana's boyfriend! "What? This laid back yahoo who's scared of spiders? And that fierce, stubborn woman? WHAT DID SHE SEE IN HIM?" (I actually do question how things will go down when/if Hana and Arashi are reunited, because they've both changed a lot.)
And Ryo/Matsuri cracks me up so much. I'm actually not sure Ryo is interested in girls at all*, but I have to root for it after Matsuri's Titanic fantasy, and then her response to his telling her not to hinder his left arm being to hang off his right arm instead. (And Ryo, we didn't miss the fact that you were the one pushing Semimaru's pingpong table. You are a gonner for Summer B.)
I...am less certain about Ango/Natsu. Ango's overprotectiveness and wanting to put her in a cocoon were pretty predictable (look, the boy has a Type of person and that's all there is to it) but I'm enjoying Arashi calling him on it.
Soon, the main thing Ango and Ryo will have to angst about is their new team squashing all their angst.
BUT! NOW THERE IS DRAMA AND TRAUMA BEING INTRODUCED TO SUMMER B! THIS IS NOT ALLOWED! SUMMER BE IS THE HAPPY SHINY PLACE OF LOVE AND LIGHT AND POSTAPOCALYPTIC TALENT SHOWS!
Sidenote: I think this is THREE subplots now where a female character's period has actually been a plot point. (Hana having reusable pads, Koruri starting her's later than normal, and that actually being an issue regarding whether or not she'd be one of the final 7, and now Natsu's period dropkicking her into a horror movie where she's on a ship with iron-hunting bacteria, though that's more something obviously about to happen than soomething already in full swing for me. Also, Natsu raided the ship for toilet paper. Priorities. She has them.)
*I'm not sure sex ed was much more than "insert object A into slot B and hope a tiny human that screams a lot pops out 9 months later," and "sexual attraction/romantic connections are not relevant to survival and/or repopulating the world."
What did you recently finish reading?
Volumes 20-27 of Skip-Beat, which I posted on separately.
The Piper by Lynn Hightower: Gothic thriller based on the "Pied Piper" fairy tale about a woman, Olivia, who receives a call from her dead brother, Chris, telling her the he "paid the piper" and that everything would be all ok now. This, of course, happens right before Olivia and her young daughter, Teddy, are about to move back into the old family home where not only did Chris die in his sleep, but from which their sister, Emily, disappeared 25 years older while watching Olivia. Chris's widow, Charlotte, believes that there's something wrong with the house, which Olivia dismisses, but soon Teddy starts claiming to be scared of the house, and that a man visits her at night and makes threats and promises. "Fun" isn't exactly the right word for this type of book, but I thought it was pretty good gothic suspense, and enjoyed it a good bit.
Zombies Calling by Faith Erin Hicks: GN about a zombie epidemic at a Canadian college, through the eyes of a zombie movie fan named Joss. The best parts are probably Joss going by The Rules of zombie movies. It's not as good as the other two books by Hicks that I read recently, but pretty fun, that it makes an awkward switch from madcap self aware romp to Serious Consequences totowards the end that was a bit jarring.
The Owl Service by Alan Garner. 60s YA novel in the vein of Susan Cooper's The Dark is Rising, based on the Welsh legend of Blodeuwedd, in which a teenager named Alison finds a service (plates) decorated with flowers that form an owl, which sets off an unusual chain of events involving her, her stepbrother Roger, and their cook's son, Gwyn. Some of the locals appear to know what's going on, but don't clue the teenagers in, and tempers and grudges are only exacerbated by classism and prejudice on all sides.
up until the end, I really really liked it, much in the same way as I still like The Dark Is Rising, but the ending was a bit too abrupt for me, and I didn't really feel that I got the needed emotional resolution for the characters, or for their conflicts with each other. Still, I'm curious about Garner's other works, if anyone wants to rec any.
Foiled by Jane Yolen and Mike Cavallaro. GN (apparently the first in a series) about a female teenaged fencer who starts having Interesting (And Sometimes Unexplainable) Things Happen after her mother buys her an unusual practice foil at a garage sale, ands she discovers her destiny as a swashbuckling defender of the (good) supernatural. When it was on, I really liked it, but a lot of time was spent on high school teen drama that didn't interest me a lot. It wasn't bad teen drama, just not overly interesting for me. There's at least one sequel, but my library doesn't have it, and I can't ILL it until I send the ones I already have back.
What do you think you'll read next?
More manga? Get back to Legend of the White-Haired Demoness once 7 Seeds stops dominating my kindle. Whatever besides manga I got from the library the other day.
The Black Moth by Georgette Heyer: Every author has to have a first book? Sometimes when they're teenagers.
7 Seeds vol 20 by Yumi Tamura. Almost caught up with scans! And have possibly already read the best (or at least, most entertaining) part of this manga.
Which is Ango and Ryo encountering Summer B.
Violent Angstmuffin Duo: What is this? Human sounds! Clearly enemeies!
Semimaru and Natsu: We are practicing our Manzai act! We are clearly clueless dorks!
Violent Angstmuffin Duo: CLEARLY THIS IS A TRAP.
Chimaki: I am standing here peacefully and quietly grinding something in a bowl.
Violent Angstmuffin Duo: CLEARLY THIS IS A TRAP. MAYBE HE IS MAKING POISON.
Matsuri: Here I am, gleefully sliding down the rocks on this wooden board.
Violent Angstmuffin Duo: CLEARLY THIS IS A TRAP.
Botan and Hotaru: Here we are, happily swimming.
Botan: I think I'll whip my shirt off and make Arashi blush.
Arashi: EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK! Please put in back on!
Ryo: Ango, this trap is obviously for you.
Ango: Leave me alllloooonnnnneeeee!
Matsuri: OH NOES! I SLIPPED!
Ango: Clearly this is phase two of the trap! But cannot let girl smash face against rocks!
Ryo: ANGO! Can't you tell this is also part of the trap?! But also cannot let girl smash face against rocks.
Matsuri: OMG HOT GUYS JUST FOR ME! I MUST GO TELL NATSU! NAT-CHAN! NAT-CHAN! THERE ARE ACTUALLY HOT ANGSTY GUYS HERE NOW! JUST FOR ME! I MEAN US!
Arashi, Semimaru and Chimaki: I feel like I was just cruelly stabbed in the heart, but I'm not sure why.
And then Ango and Ryo's reactions to learning Arashi is Hana's boyfriend! "What? This laid back yahoo who's scared of spiders? And that fierce, stubborn woman? WHAT DID SHE SEE IN HIM?" (I actually do question how things will go down when/if Hana and Arashi are reunited, because they've both changed a lot.)
And Ryo/Matsuri cracks me up so much. I'm actually not sure Ryo is interested in girls at all*, but I have to root for it after Matsuri's Titanic fantasy, and then her response to his telling her not to hinder his left arm being to hang off his right arm instead. (And Ryo, we didn't miss the fact that you were the one pushing Semimaru's pingpong table. You are a gonner for Summer B.)
I...am less certain about Ango/Natsu. Ango's overprotectiveness and wanting to put her in a cocoon were pretty predictable (look, the boy has a Type of person and that's all there is to it) but I'm enjoying Arashi calling him on it.
Soon, the main thing Ango and Ryo will have to angst about is their new team squashing all their angst.
BUT! NOW THERE IS DRAMA AND TRAUMA BEING INTRODUCED TO SUMMER B! THIS IS NOT ALLOWED! SUMMER BE IS THE HAPPY SHINY PLACE OF LOVE AND LIGHT AND POSTAPOCALYPTIC TALENT SHOWS!
Sidenote: I think this is THREE subplots now where a female character's period has actually been a plot point. (Hana having reusable pads, Koruri starting her's later than normal, and that actually being an issue regarding whether or not she'd be one of the final 7, and now Natsu's period dropkicking her into a horror movie where she's on a ship with iron-hunting bacteria, though that's more something obviously about to happen than soomething already in full swing for me. Also, Natsu raided the ship for toilet paper. Priorities. She has them.)
*I'm not sure sex ed was much more than "insert object A into slot B and hope a tiny human that screams a lot pops out 9 months later," and "sexual attraction/romantic connections are not relevant to survival and/or repopulating the world."
What did you recently finish reading?
Volumes 20-27 of Skip-Beat, which I posted on separately.
The Piper by Lynn Hightower: Gothic thriller based on the "Pied Piper" fairy tale about a woman, Olivia, who receives a call from her dead brother, Chris, telling her the he "paid the piper" and that everything would be all ok now. This, of course, happens right before Olivia and her young daughter, Teddy, are about to move back into the old family home where not only did Chris die in his sleep, but from which their sister, Emily, disappeared 25 years older while watching Olivia. Chris's widow, Charlotte, believes that there's something wrong with the house, which Olivia dismisses, but soon Teddy starts claiming to be scared of the house, and that a man visits her at night and makes threats and promises. "Fun" isn't exactly the right word for this type of book, but I thought it was pretty good gothic suspense, and enjoyed it a good bit.
Zombies Calling by Faith Erin Hicks: GN about a zombie epidemic at a Canadian college, through the eyes of a zombie movie fan named Joss. The best parts are probably Joss going by The Rules of zombie movies. It's not as good as the other two books by Hicks that I read recently, but pretty fun, that it makes an awkward switch from madcap self aware romp to Serious Consequences totowards the end that was a bit jarring.
The Owl Service by Alan Garner. 60s YA novel in the vein of Susan Cooper's The Dark is Rising, based on the Welsh legend of Blodeuwedd, in which a teenager named Alison finds a service (plates) decorated with flowers that form an owl, which sets off an unusual chain of events involving her, her stepbrother Roger, and their cook's son, Gwyn. Some of the locals appear to know what's going on, but don't clue the teenagers in, and tempers and grudges are only exacerbated by classism and prejudice on all sides.
up until the end, I really really liked it, much in the same way as I still like The Dark Is Rising, but the ending was a bit too abrupt for me, and I didn't really feel that I got the needed emotional resolution for the characters, or for their conflicts with each other. Still, I'm curious about Garner's other works, if anyone wants to rec any.
Foiled by Jane Yolen and Mike Cavallaro. GN (apparently the first in a series) about a female teenaged fencer who starts having Interesting (And Sometimes Unexplainable) Things Happen after her mother buys her an unusual practice foil at a garage sale, ands she discovers her destiny as a swashbuckling defender of the (good) supernatural. When it was on, I really liked it, but a lot of time was spent on high school teen drama that didn't interest me a lot. It wasn't bad teen drama, just not overly interesting for me. There's at least one sequel, but my library doesn't have it, and I can't ILL it until I send the ones I already have back.
What do you think you'll read next?
More manga? Get back to Legend of the White-Haired Demoness once 7 Seeds stops dominating my kindle. Whatever besides manga I got from the library the other day.