It's been a long time since I've read a thriller, or a book with (basically) only three straight white male characters, but I really enjoyed this one.  It's no surprise that Lynch has been a National Book Award finalist or that he's won a bunch of awards (also no surprise he has an MFA, but I won't go there now).  Kill Switch is a fast read but ( Read more... )

So while I was bored or stressed at my former day job I'd daydream about what I'd be doing if I wasn't there.  The reality has been pretty different, but whatchagonnado?  Sometimes I'm motivated to get things done, sometimes all I want to do is move on to the next page of a Cheezburger site.

Today I finished Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews.  Normally I ( Read more... )

It was a little strange reading a book without "YA" on the spine, but I had to laugh when I realized it very well could've been classified that way.  Aside from the outermost framing story, all of the important characters are kids or young adults & there's very little content that would give a publisher pause . . . except for the author's name, I  ( Read more... )

So I've been meaning to read one of Emma Bull's novels for a little while, & thought it would be War For The Oaks since that's the one she made such a splash with.  I got impatient, though, & Territory was in at the library so I gave it a shot.  This book has just about everything I like:  cowboys, magic, a strong female protagonist, suspense, a ( Read more... )

So a few years ago, after I read Tithe, I made a notation in my master TBR list to read all of Holly Black's books.  I haven't yet, but I did pick up White Cat when it came out in TPB & fell in love with the curseworkers world & Cassel Sharpe.  If I wasn't about to move, I'd probably buy Black Heart just to read it again a couple of times & unpack ( Read more... )

Why the hell didn't I find this book in 1986?!

Well, that's pretty easy.  In 1986 when I wasn't working or, erm, sleeping, I had a wrench in my hand or the wind in my hair.  I did very little reading outside of the stripped paperbacks I collected from one of my three jobs -- the books nobody wanted to buy (mostly Louis L'Amour & Zane Gray).  But ( Read more... )

I bought the Kindle edition of this book because it's a Lambda Award Finalist & the premise is awesome (& I wanted some instant gratification reading). I've heard good things about Ms Witt's writing so I didn't hesitate to pluck her book off the award list first, but to me it's a high-concept novel that just didn't make it in the character ( Read more... )

Jennie Shortridge wrote one of my favorite books ever, Riding With The Queen, & she's a very cool gal.  I've taken two of her workshops over the years & not only did I have a blast but I learned things I still use.  I'd avoided this book since '09 because I usually don't like books based on true stories -- the story is usually secondary to the " ( Read more... )

So today I finished another book for my reading challenge:  Maurice by EM Forster.  It’s been on my TBR list for a long time (since I saw the movie :)).  At first I was a little put off because it was written over a hundred years ago - wasn’t sure how easy it would be to get into the writing style.  It wasn’t very, but easy isn’t always best ( Read more... )

I literally just finished this book, and am barely keeping myself from sobbing like a blubbery little toddler.  But that's only because this book has already made me cry a few times.  I'm putting it under Romantic Fiction in my challenge list because it's probably the most romantic story I've read in a good long time.  It's highly unlikely I'll ( Read more... )