I Lied

In my last post I was all like "I'll be better." But I lied. I am horrible when it comes to keeping on top of journals. That's all right though. So updates: I've been reading a bit less obsessively because I am now taking a transcription course which my employer was nice enough to pay for. Medical terminology is exciting. It is a daunting task as I haven't done any schooling in about 5 years, but I feel pretty good about it and I am doing well. We got a new kitty for Christmas. Her name Maude (inspired by the movie Harold & Maude). She's the cutest little puffball. Right now we are working on getting her and Dru accustomed to each other. It is going pretty well. Dru has done some growling and hissing, but when we let Maude out of the bedroom this morning they nudged faced. That is an awesome sign and we were pretty excited about it. Since I last posted I re-read the Southern Vampire series by Charlaine Harris, Neil Gaiman's Coraline, and George R. Stewart's Earth Abides. I participated in a book club for my friend & coworker's Ecopsychology project so I read most of Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver as well. The book was okay. It isn't really my kind of book, but I enjoyed it at least a little bit. Earth Abides was our last book and the member's seemed to enjoy it. What else.... Chuck Klosterman's Sex, Drugs & Cocoa Puffs was pretentious and kind of fun too. Something for the dork in all of us. I skimmed the Wicca Handbook and the Complete Idiot's Guide to Wicca. Turns out that even though I am a total dork I am not ready to go out hugging trees and casting pretend spells. It was worth a try but also, you know, ridiculous. Way to hokey for my tastes. I went through a Harry Potter audio book phase and then devoured Tales of Beedle the Bard when it came out. It was a little disappointing because it was so tiny... not to mention the Warner Brother's assholes deciding not to release the Half Blood Prince movie until July (as opposed to November) so that they could make a few more buckets of money. Good for them and bad for the fans who were looking forward to seeing it last month. Now Patrick and I are on a Buffy the Vampire kick. We started at season 5 and are now into season 6. Last night I watched the musical episode which was just as awesome as always. Okay.. so I think that is all for now. Here a couple pictures to wrap all this up:
Maude - this is the first picture that we were able to get of her that isn't just a blur. Turns out it is pretty difficult to take a picture of something that moves constantly.

This is Dru (Drusilla - inspired by the vampire in the Buffy series) at around the same age Maude is now. Never name your kitty after something that is totally evil unless you want her to turn out totally evil... well she's not really evil she's just crazy like the character she was named after. :)

Okay that's all we need to go to the store for kitty supplies.

Vampires, Time Travel, Real Life

21. All Together Dead - Harris

I obviously had to take some time off from Outlander when I was able to get this one because I had eagerly anticipated it far days. (A little impatient, I know)

I am really impressed with Charlaine Harris. Even though I have really enjoyed all the books in the series I was getting a little bit bored with having kind of the same plot line in each of the books. This one took Sookie completely out of her comfort zone and it was actually a bit more serious. That is probably because it was written after Hurricane Katrina. The book did mention that, and in general there was just a lot more disaster. I really enjoyed reading it, and I'm sad that it is over. Luckily I only have to wait until May for the next installment. The first chapter of From Dead to Worse was included at the end of this one so I got a little taste of what's to come. I'm looking forward to it.

And now - Outlander. It took me a bit to get into it, but now I am really enjoying it. I wasn't that interested until the woman read Claire's tea leaves and her palm. It has continued to get better from that point. More about that one when I've finished though.

In other news - I am taking Monday and Tuesday off so that I will have a four day weekend. I am hoping that it will keep my head from exploding... work has been stressful for a few days. Working at a mental health center is rewarding, but sometimes I wish I had a job that had a lower death toll. I hadn't experienced much loss in my life until the mental health center and now it has really compounded. I wonder if it is something that I will ever be able to adjust to... I also don't know if it is something that I want to adjust to. Anyway... it is difficult.

Don't Fight It or Recognizing Denial

For quite some time now I have insisted that I do not like reading romances or westerns. Well, I've been thinking. I cannot say that I don't like romances... well I can, but I think I might be lying. They just have to be supernatural romances. I think the elitist English major in me didn't want to admit that I could thoroughly enjoy fluff... (I don't know why I've got such a negative attitude towards romance in the first place).
So I am just going to get this off my chest:

Over the past year or so I have read a few supernatural romances and I have really enjoyed
them. I have denied and denied, but I will deny no longer. I really like reading supernatural romances.

Okay I feel better.

20. Definitely Dead - Harris

I finished this afternoon. Unfortunately I don't have All Together Dead yet, but I am anxiously awaiting Tuesday when it is released. I think I may be going through withdrawals, but I don't know and maybe I wouldn't admit it if I were. So yeah, just as good as the rest, still pretty sexy and now there's a weretiger. That's pretty cool. I found it funny that I said Sookie was kind of a slut in the last post, but in this one she wasn't so much. (Not that I mind a slutty Sookie. She certainly keeps me amused.) She didn't have actual sex with anyone in this book. And she only kissed a couple different guys so that's pretty chaste for her.
I have one complaint about these books so far. This is definitely the English major in me speaking, but here it is: Would it kill the people who publish these books to hire someone who can read and pick out various grammatical errors. Every single one of the books has had at least a couple that made me stop and re-read just to make sure that it was really there. It is so distracting. There were situations where the wrong word was used and the sentence made absolutely no sense. Is it so difficult to proofread? I've never encountered this in any other series, but it frustrates me. The errors will not make me quit reading the series, but I am still annoyed.
I'm done now. I have no idea what to read next. Maybe I'll take a day off. Maybe not.

Not an Addict

I thought I'd pop in here briefly to talk about the reading that I've done in the past two-ish days.

18. Dead to the World - Harris
19. Dead as a Doornail - Harris

So I've pretty much not stopped reading in the past few days... with the exception of working. (But even then I read on my lunch break)
These two books have been every bit as good as the others by Harris. They really sweep you up. I've been thinking about it a bit, and I've realized that they are addictive like Buffy the Vampire Slayer is addictive. They're not like great literature or anything, (Sorry Charlaine) but they have all sorts of twists and turns. They are brimming with sexual tension. There is romance, action, fantasy, etc.
I think I am just surprised that I have become so immersed in these books when they are so different from what I usually read. I do, of course, read fantasy a lot but they don't usually contain scenes that make me blush. Seriously - They're naughty. Interesting that Sookie goes from being a virgin to being kind of a slut.
Anyhow... all I'm saying is that it is unusual, but I won't fight it. I am enjoying the books as much as and as quickly as possible despite the effect that the total immersion kind of conflicts with real life. My husband is still driven crazy by the constant reading and he is still threatening to call the people that run the show Intervention because I so obviously need one. ;) I could totally quit if I wanted to with no problem. I just don't want to... Trust me... I've got it under control.

I suppose that it should go without saying that I'm well into Definitely Dead at this point and that's okay.

Ready? Okay.

So I dragged my husband to Hastings to pick up the remaining Sookie books, but they only had two of the four. (Sad, I know) We went to Barnes & Noble and they had one more. So now I have Dead Until Dark, Living Dead in Dallas, Club Dead, Dead to the World, Dead as a Doornail, and Definitely Dead.

Apparently All Together Dead hasn't been released yet, which I didn't realize. I just checked amazon.com and I guess it is a reprint. So that's cool. I can wait until Tuesday. Book eight From Dead to Worse is due out on May 6. I have mixed feelings about that because I will obviously want to read it immediately, but unless I wait to buy the paperback my set won't match. It is a real dilemma. I'm sure I'll break down and buy it.. that is just my way. Poor me, right? :p

Okay, I suppose I should go start reading now... these books certainly are not going to read themselves. ;) Plus, Lost is on in an hour so I have limited time.

Must. Stop. Typing.

It is so difficult. I love my new blog.

Now the Current Posts Start

16. Living Dead In Dallas - Harris
17. Club Dead - Harris

Have I mentioned my deep and quite new love of Charlaine Harris? I don't think I have. I am going to say this now... I am obsessed. I had heard good things about the Sookie Stackhouse Series. When I asked for suggestions on paperback swap for books that feature vampires (because I'm obsessed with Buffy) I ordered several of the books. This was quite a long time ago... and for some reason my stupid brain was like "No Bethany, read every other thing first don't open that book that you'll absolutely love even though you don't even know it yet." (I've got great internal dialogue).

But I'll stop that now. All I have to say is that the Sookie series is absolutely amazing. I finished Club Dead yesterday and went through withdrawals on my lunch break because I didn't have my nose stuck in a book. When I got home from work I nonchalantly mentioned my addiction to my husband. He sees right through me.
"Go ahead and order the next one" He says.
"But there are several" I say.
"How many?" He says with deep trepidation.
And at that I swiftly pull out a list of books that I printed out while at work today... that totally gave my whole scheme away. (As if it was a secret to begin with... I am so transparent.)

We will be going to Hastings a little later.


Okay... so impressions of books two and three in the Sookie Stackouse series:

• Adventurous
• SEXY
• Probably shouldn't read them at work.
  
• I want more right now.
  
• Who would've thought that there could be three characters in a single book who you really want to do the main character? AND you don't care which one it is! (Sorry, but it is true).
• Charlaine Harris is my hero.

Okay, my brain is too clouded by desire for the rest of the books that I cannot think properly, but suffice to say: The Sookie series is a keeper for me, and I will proudly display the set alongside my complete set of Harry Potter, my autographed Neil Gaiman selections, and my recently acquired hardcover copy of The Neverending Story.

Still Going Strong

March 16

15. Elsewhere - Zevin

I had a very good feeling about Elsewhere. When I read the description I thought it would be similar to The Lovely Bones which I really enjoyed. It did turn out to be similar, but not quite what I expected.

Elsewhere was clearly written for younger people. It was a very quick read, but also quite good. At times I was a little bit annoyed at how childish it was, but I worked hard to keep the audience it was intended for in mind. Zevin did a very good job of creating characters that you really care about. Part of the reason why I finished in a day was that I just really wanted to know how Liz's journey would progress. It had great ups and downs. I really enjoyed the read.

Up next: Living Dead in Dallas - Harris

2008 Books

March 4
I didn't do so well with the new author challenge last year so this year I am just going to keep track of what I read. I've been a little crazy with reading this year so here is the list (in the order that I remember them) so far:
1. Artemis Fowl - Colfer
2. Ender's Game - Card
3. Poison Study - Snyder
4. Magic Study - Snyder
5. Fire Study - Snyder
6. Dead Until Dark - Harris
7. Alien Secrets - Klause
8. The Fall - Nix
9. Which Witch - Ibottson
10. The Book of Names - Peel
11. Julie & Julia - Powell

I am satisfied with my choices so far this year. Several of those books are kids books, but I think they fueled the fire. Ender's Game was amazing.. It was so much more than I expected it to be and I cannot wait to continue the series.
Poison Study, Magic Study, and Fire Study were all fabulous. As soon as I finished Poison Study I had to have Magic Study and was pleasantly surprised that there was a third book. I am sad that it is over though.
I finished Dead Until Dark tonight. I was pleasantly surprised with that one too. I love the random vampire story and this one was no disappointment. It was kind of sexy too. ;)
All right, that is all for now. Next up is Life As We Knew It.