Finished A WRINKLE IN TIME

I think calling this Science Fiction is not specific enough.  It is highly acclaimed and has been for a very long time, but this classification may have been part of what kept me from reading it.  I've had a love/hate relationship with SciFi in my lifetime, but have always enjoyed Fantasy.  I believe this is a Space Fantasy.  Of course it is childish--it is for children--but it is also mind expanding, and therefore, excellent for children (and maybe me.)  Probably my quibbling with genre is picky, because,  since it was classified, a huge body of knowledge about space has been accrued...

I have now begun Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini.  Themes of class exploitation, friendship, and gentle enjoyment of ones culture, as well as growing up make up this book.  I am already into the characters of the two fathers and their backgrounds.

Finished PEOPLE OF THE RAVEN

I swear each of these books is better than the last.  Since writing People of the Wolf new people have been discovered living in the area that is now Seattle--Caucasoid people.  Where they came from is a mystery, but the bones were definitely dated to about 9000 BC, meaning both Mongoloid and Caucasoid people existed at that place and time.  Using that discovery, the Gears come up with a whole new story focusing on suspicions these people might have of the other while able to see and understand the obvious similarities.  Add serious climate change at the same time, and the story just gets better.

I have now started A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine l'Engle.  How I have missed this book, I have no idea, but I have indeed never read it.  I have read the first two chapters and have met several most delightful characters.

Finished FLEECED

I think I actually enjoyed this more than any other book I have read (so far) by Carol Higgins Clark.  Now we have two murders, people whose lives are in danger, multiple villains, flawed heroes, and a budding romance in the background of the action.  It was mystery, thriller, and really fun character study.  Loved it.

I have just started reading People of the Raven by Kathleen O'Neal Gear and W. Michael Gear.  It appears to be set at about the same time as People of the Wolf  (about 7000 BC) and is correcting/ adding to the information in that novel after the discovery of a Caucasoid skeleton from about the same time as the appearance of the first Mongoloid skeletons found on our continent.  I can't wait to get into it.

Finished COLD DAYS

Dresden, recovered from a really bad case of death, is now the Winter Knight and is charged with killing the Winter Lady, Maeve, an immortal.  He is not sure he even can kill an immortal, and he sure doesn't want to...not without a really good reason.  But, boy, is there a good reason!

Not only is the book exciting reading from cover to cover, but there are also a lot of good belly laughs along the way.

I have now started Fleeced by Carol Higgins Clarke.  Two likable old men are dead, one of an apparent heart attack and the other of accidental drowning.  However, one of them appears to have been robbed as well, and the robbery is looking to have been committed by the manager of his building.  Regan Reilly must attempt to discover the truth in just one week-end.

Finished MURDER ON THE BALLARAT TRAIN

Once again Kerry Greenwood has done it.  Complicated triple plot, red herrings, character development, violence and danger, and satisfying solutions all in 151 pages.  Lots of fun.

I have now started Cold Days, a Harry Dresden novel by Jim Butcher.  Having been murdered with several bullets, Harry now finds himself recovering in the home of Queen Mab for whom he is now to serve as Winter Knight...and office he is not enamoured with, to say the very least.  Like the others in the series, this starts with Harry in danger and contending with supernatural violence from page one.

Finished THE WOLF GIFT by Ann Rice

It starts with a long, atmospheric, gentle and loving description of a house, a house which was to be not only setting but almost character in this novel.  As Ruben falls in love with the house as well as the woman who is showing it to him, the Ann Rice enthusiast does also.  The book enfolds slowly, leisurely, lovingly, gently, yet mysteriously, as the author's novels often do.  There is story and violence, but this author takes time to admire the world and the people surrounding and engaged in those.  As always, she explores questions of good and evil (or innocence and evil) and of longevity.  Ann Rice has never let me down.



I have now started Murder on the Ballarat Train by Kerry Greenwood.  What always strikes me about these books is that the mystery seems much too complicated to be solved in the 151 pages of the book.  On the first night of her train trip to Ballarat, the first class coach is swept with chloroform which renders everyone on board unconscious, but Phryne.  She, however, is feeling the effects of the drug as she stumbles throughout the car, opening windows and pulling the emergency cord.  An old woman in the first cabin is missing (later to be found dead) and her adult daughter has a chloroform-soaked rag over her face.  Add to that, a young girl (13) is found with no memory.  Already on page 45, I have no idea how this double mystery can be solved in only 106 pages.

Finished TRIPLE

I do not think of myself as a spy novel enthusiast, but, given a great author, I find myself at the edge of my seat in "have to finish" mode.  Stayed up an hour beyond bedtime to finish this one last night.  Great yarn!



Am now starting The Wolf Gift by Anne Rice.  Read some of the reviews on Goodreads, Wow.  Lots of people really hate this book!  But I have loved everything I've read by Anne Rice, including Christ the Lord, which has started me off reading The Lost Scriptures, and other collections of Apocrypha.  So I will go boldly ahead, expecting to love this.  The problem lots of people have with her is that her monsters can be likable while traditional.   Lots of people have trouble "suspending belief" (that is, stepping into a fantasy world), but I can't even imagine them trying to read an Anne Rice novel.

Finished HIDDEN

Once again, I am charmed by the world created in this series and as always, thrilled by the adventure.  Now we add the changing nature of people and character which adds another dimension of complexity to this inventive 'verse.



Have now started Triple, by Ken Follett, a spy novel set in the late '60s, speculating about the espionage and counter-espionage necessary to give Israel a nuclear bomb before any of its neighbors.  I'm already very much into it....

Finished Billy Crystal's STILL FOOLIN' EM

Though sometimes the humor was too exaggerated for me to find funny, it was often hysterical and often poignant.  Billy gives us his thoughts as he approaches his 65th birthday.  Having just celebrated my 70th, I had no trouble identifying with him.

Am now about to start Hidden by P. C. and Kristin Cast.  #10 in the House of Night series.

Finished SACRED EVIL

Interesting and unusual take on the Jack the Ripper mystery, and a good romance to go along with it.

Have now barely started Billy Crystal's Still Foolin' Em.  I'm actually still reading the jacket, but have already had two good belly laughs.

Completed Part IV of Les Mis

His story is engrossing, his characters wonderful, his descriptions and language just lovely, and his historical narrative, filled with opinions about human nature and the nature of violence can be either interesting or completely boring.  The initial part of this section fell in the latter category, but the rest was wonderful.



I have now started Sacred Evil by Heather Graham.  The Krewe of Hunters books use a group of people with varied skills who encounter ghosts (usually well-meaning and helpful) to solve real life crimes.  This books deals with a Jack the Ripper wannabe in the modern day streets of NY.

Leaving BY BLOOD WE LIVE

Having read about 100 pages and several short stories, I have decided I am a little overdosed with vampires for awhile.  Those that I have been meeting are traditional vamps, though there are differences.  Harry Turtledove centers his story in the Christian world--indeed the Vatican.  Then Tad Williams centers his story among Muslims in the near east, and Michael A. Burstein's characters are Jewish.  Barbara spins a yarn of exploration of the South Pole.  And here I leave the book, though I will return.  I am enjoying the variety.



I will now return to Les Mis, which I am sure has been languishing in my absence.

Leaving ROUGHING IT for awhile

I journeyed with Mark Twain on the stagecoach to his first destination, Carson City, Nevada.  I enjoyed his anecdotes about the people he met and the descriptions of the stations and towns he passed through, including Salt Lake City with his account of the Mormons.  (So much enjoyed, that I laughed out loud much of the way.)  When reading Mark Twain, never skip around his digressions.  The story about the camel in Syria, though it had nothing to do with this trip, still makes me laugh out loud.  Things that would have been tragic or disgusting to most people are rendered, by Twain's gross understatement, to be quite hysterical!  Normally, I put aside prodigious books for a time to read something else.  This it the same, but unlike others I have put aside, the reading of it is not prodigious, it is the heft of the Heritage Edition I am reading--it must weigh 15 pounds, and my arthritis is not up to it for long.  So, I'll be back, but for now, I am moving on.

I have now started By Blood We Live, a collection of short stories about vampires, exploring the different kind of vampires written about by contemporary adult authors.  I've read stories by Neil Gaiman (an old telling of the Snow White story in which Snow is a vampire and her step-mother witch is the tragic heroine), Anne Rice about a traditional vampire, and am now into a story by Harry Turtledove.  Quite enjoyable....

Finished TREKS NOT TAKEN by Steven R. Boyett

In my creative writing course my freshman year in college, our assignment was to write a parody.  When mine came back, my professor had written, "You imitate Mark Twain's writing style very well, but the problem here is lack of plot."  True also of these stories.

Normally I would not have finished such a disgusting collection of disrespectful puerile testosterone-laced sexual fantasies, but TR had read it and was waiting excitedly for my commentary.  I'm sure he did enjoy it...part of what I love about him is that he is basically a 75 year old 7th grade boy.  Perhaps I'll only tell him the first part of my review...



I am now about to start Roughing It by Mark Twain.  I've seen the movie produced from it, which is not the order in which I normally like to approach a story, but, oh well.  Though the movie tried to give narration purportedly in the voice of an older Mark Twain, I'm sure I will love the book more.  I love his tongue-in-cheek country boy humor and wisdom.  This is not the actual edition I am reading, but has nearly the same number of pages.  I am reading a collector's edition hardback with some illustrations by Noel Sickles.

Finished BEAUTIFUL SACRIFICE by Elizabeth Lowell

This book, sent to me for my birthday by friend Judith, was wonderful.  It started romantically and respectfully of both protagonists' professions, though they were like exact opposites, but it was true that they had one common interest.  They are on the trail of undocumented artifacts confiscated by customs as they came across the border and stolen shortly thereafter.  About half-way through, the reader figures out what is going on (though not who the perpetrator is), but neither of the protagonists do.  The rest is pure thriller, exciting but also sprinkled with fascinating descriptions of the Yucatan jungle and various artifacts encountered.  I loved this so much, I intend to ask Judith about other books by this author that she may have read.



I have now started Treks Not Taken, by Steven R. Boyett.  The introduction starts by describing a portfolio of outlines for episodes of Star Trek, the Next Generation, by famous authors who wanted to write for the franchise.  I was nearly suckered in until it was pointed out that some were by authors who had died long before TNG was even a figment in Gene Roddenberry's brain.  All of these stories are parodies of how different authors might have written TNG scripts by Steven R. Boyett.  I have already laughed my way through the intro and the first story, "The Crusher in the Rye," not by J.D. Salinger.  And I am not fond of the book being parodied here, so....

Finished MY GAL SUNDAY, by Mary Higgins Clark

The longest story was the second which was the basis for the Hallmark movie of the same title.  However, unusually, the movie was better--explaining Wexler's motive better and giving Sunday much more to do.  The last two stories were also good, the last being a Christmas thriller, but with the scary parts quite short and the heart-warming parts quite satisfying.

I have now started a book given to me by friend Judith: Beautiful Sacrifice by Elizabeth Lowell.  I only just started it and know little except that the heroine is an archeologist and the man she is interested in does dangerous rescue work at least in Latin America.  They are already quite interesting characters.

Started MY GAL SUNDAY by Mary Higgins Clark

An unlikely couple solve mysteries in in four short stories.  The entire book is just over 200 pages, and the first mystery, at least, is not uncomplicated, though they are moving pretty quickly.  Promises to be pretty good.  I think I have seen one of the stories on Hallmark Mystery Channel.

Finished INTO THE WOODS, by Kim Harrison

I had already read most, but not all, of the stories from the Hollows in other anthologies.  The two I had not read, I very much enjoyed.  I had read none of the stories from beyond the Hollows.  These latter showed Kim shaping her mythology and playing with various fanciful figures as well as a human with supernatural powers.  These gave me insights into her very inventive mind as well as making me long for more of Grace, the last character introduced in this book.

I, then started to read a Mary Jane Clarke book I quickly figured out I have already read, so will start another later today.

Finished FLYING TOO HIGH by Kerry Greenwood

With two mysteries to solve, this turned into a madcap and fun romp with even time for a bit of shenanigans thrown in (because without shenanigans, it couldn't possibly be a Phryne Fisher book.)  Reading these books is a great time...



I am now starting Into the Woods,  a book of short stories by Kim Harrison.  About half of the stories are tales of "the Hollows" and the other half are other stories by the author.  I find I have already read some of the stories by reading other books, so I can skip some.  The first tells how Al convinced Ceri to join him...pretty good.  Skipped the second (Rachel meets Pierce) and am now reading about Ivy's early days with the IS.

Finished THE BOOK OF LIFE by Deborah Harkness

And this finishes the trilogy (unfortunately). I have really enjoyed this one.  She leaves room for another addition to this world, but she will need to come up with more villains to make even one more book.  Maybe set it in a later time, or have another time-walking adventure, or focus on a different character.  I hope she is considering it, because I really enjoy this 'verse she has created.

I have now started Flying Too High by Kerry Greenwood.  This is a part of the Phyrne Fisher short mystery series which TR and I discovered on PBS.  Phyrne is a flapper living in 1920s Austrailia, rich and idle until she decides to become a private investigator.  She is hired by Mrs. McNaughton to keep her son, Bill, from murdering his father.  There is also a kidnapping of a young girl by a child molestor to be tracked down.  Quite a bit to handle in 156 pages, especially since enjoyable characters give the reader smiles as well as chills.

Finished NIGHT OVER WATER by Ken Follett

I liked this even better than the much longer historical novels of his that I have read.  About half the size of The Pillars of the Earth, etc, this being shorter is also much tighter, concentrating the tension into a 48 hour period.  With characters every bit as well drawn as those in The Fall of Giants and Winter of the World, the tension is not dissipated by already knowing what will happen to the plane.  I have ordered three more of Follett's thrillers...



I have now started The Book of Life, the third book in Deborah Harkness' witch trilogy.  It has already started intriguingly with Diana and Matthew's return to the present and discovery of Emily's death.  Love these books.

Finished THE SECRET CIRCLE, THE DIVIDE

Witch hunters are in town and that is not the only problem the circle faces.  The book leaves plenty of room for sequels.  I do enjoy these action-packed easy reading books.

I have now started Night Over Water, by Ken Follett.  It is an historical thriller starting in England just after they have declared war against Germany in WWII.  A luxurious Pan Am Clipper is about to leave for America with the "cream of society and the dregs of humanity."   I am only a few pages in and, so far, we are just having a love affair with this beautiful luxurious airplane as it is sumptuously described.  I've only just barely met a couple of the characters.

Finished Maureen O'Hara's Autobiography

I enjoyed it.  Of course, I was disappointed by her reaction to some of her directors and co-stars (not to mention Disney), but I was also delighted by the descriptions of others.  Her life was not as happy or as under control as she appeared in her movies, and that is always a disappointment, but one I am used to from the number of biographies I have read.  However, in a lot of ways, the character she showed us in the movies was similar to herself.  The book was well written and interesting.


I am now reading The Secret Circle 4, The Divide.  I only just noticed that, though it was created by L. J. Smith, it was written by Aubrey Clark.  Also, by reading the quick synopsis in Goodreads I learned something I had not yet learned in the book--and, at p 170, I am already more than half-way through the book.  Having a spoiler in the teaser that far into the book is rather infuriating...  The secret circle is a coven of teen-age witches, most of whom are good witches....

Finished TEXAS CURIOSITIES

This book was fun.  It was entertaining to read the first half straight through, and, when I knew I couldn't afford to keep reading it like that (time-wise), it was fun when I relegated it to the bathroom...I didn't resent having to go to the bathroom at all.  Now, I think I will have to find another bathroom book.

Finished A LION AMONG MEN

I found the book involving, though it took a long time to warm up to Brrr.  I did immediately like Yackle, though, so I very much enjoyed the book.  Gregory Maguire has definitely left room for a fourth book in the series, though I don't know if he intends writing such a thing.



I have now started reading Maureen O'Hara's autobiography and am very much looking forward to it.  She was one of my very favorite female stars of the Golden Era and worked with just about all of my other favorites.  I hope she includes lots of behind the scenes stories about the making of her movies.

Started Reading A LION AMONG MEN

This is the third book in the Wicked trilogy.  The first 100 pages have been primarily a conversation between the lion and Yackle ostensibly to learn what Yackle knows about the Thropp family, but in it we learn a great deal about  the conversers.   Very readable.

Finished the section in LOST SCRIPTURES that I had appointed for myself...

this far.  The section was Non-Canonicle Epistles and Related Writings.  Arranged chronologically as well as scholars can date them, they were written from about 100 a.d through about 500 a.d.. and give us an idea of the development and arguments of the early church that led to what we have today.  Much of the opposing ideas (to Orthodox thinking of the time) are now incorporated in many of our Protestant churches.  Our early history is really quite fascinating and the thinking is quite diverse.  However, I will break now and finish the book at another time.

Started reading Cure by Robin Cook, but it sounded familiar.  Checked in Goodreads and, yep, I read it three years ago.  So, on to something else.