Signor Finzione

Welcome to my 2015 reading log. These were my targets at the beginning of last year: I don't think I achieved any of them. So I've decided this year's targets are going to be a bit more realistic. Targets for 2015: 1. Read at least 1 book. 2. Buy less than 50 new books. 3. That's it. I'm no longer keeping track of my TBR because, frankly, it's depressing. I'm just going to read whatever takes my fancy, and just hope I don't suffer a major loss of mojo like I did towards the end of last year. I'm going to start off the new reading log by posting reviews of the books I read over the last couple of months, since I've only just got round to writing them. I'm yet to complete my first read of 2015, which is Magician by Raymond E. Feist. Happy reading in 2015! [Edited immediately after posting because apparently I can't spell.]

Great Christmas books Devi, nice haul! I love your idea of having a mini-TBR for each genre. The Reapers are the Angels has been on my wishlist for a while, so I look forward to seeing what you make of it. Happy reading in 2015!

Happy reading in 2015 Steve. No lists or targets for me either! FREEDOM!!!

Amazing bookshelves! I almost died with envy when I saw the fantasy ones.

Hmm, I read the Calvino a few years ago and seem to remember finding it a bit confusing! It's very post-moderny. Hope you have fun with it.

Not really. I finished the first Harry Potter book a few weeks ago but haven't got round to writing a review yet, and I've been reading my current book for what feels like forever! I read a few pages on my lunch break each day, but that's about it. Bring on the Christmas holidays.

I had a look in Waterstones and there does seem to be a lot of new writing in it, but the fact that much of it is written by GRRM fanboys rather than GRRM himself puts me off buying it.

I love the birthday books - they look as though they're flying!

I haven't been around here very much lately - that pesky 'life' thing has been getting in the way, and any spare time I have has been spent on trying to get my stuff organised for NaNo (still haven't been able to start on the actual writing yet . . . ). As you can see, Fili has been very helpful: she does this every time I try and sit down to write: . . . and this . . . . . . which has been slowing down the writing process somewhat.

Nah, she always looks like that. Thanks Gaia! I'm sure I will . . . in 47 years when I get around to reading them. Thanks Devi! She's also very heavy.

So, I've been pretty busy this week re-decorating the kitchen and living room with the husband and the mother. Here are a couple of pictures (not all that interesting, but we rarely have visitors and it seems a shame not to show it off ): We also went into Manchester yesterday, where I accidentally bought some books from the Works on their '3 for £5' deal. For some reason Kili decided she wanted to guard them:

Happy belated birthday Gaia! Love the presents.

Ooh, The Halloween Tree sounds lovely.

I've had The Steel Remains on my wishlist for aaaaages - nice review.

You definitely deserve a reward for that! More books, perhaps?

So did I! Isn't it odd how it seems to be called NOS4A2 in the US but NOS4R2 in the UK?

:exc: That's awesome. I probably haven't read that much in the last five years put together.

In publication order, starting from the beginning of the series, I've only read as far as Pyramids (#7) (with my next unread one being Guards! Guards!), but I've also read Hogfather (#20), The Truth (#25), Thief of Time (#26), Night Watch (#29) and Going Postal (#33). However, I now own quite a few of the series, and should really "just get on with it" as you say. I totally agree that you have too be in the mood for him!

I was very confused towards the beginning, when the burned woman appears in Sweetclover Hall directly after Jana has timehopped. I thought it was Jana.

That's the plan, yes! I'm reading them in publication order (rather than grouping them together under the separate storylines), and am looking forward to getting around to the ones I haven't read before. I imagine I'll give Heart-Shaped Box a try in the future, since I own it (only paid £1.99 for it!). I agree, NOS4R2 does sound more appealing - I've had it on my wishlist since reading Tim's review. Well, it's not your fault I didn't enjoy it. I would probably have enjoyed it more if it were the sort of thing I normally read. I'll probably get hold of NOS4R2 in the future - many fantasy novels I read tend to be around the 800-1,000 page mark, so I don't mind long novels.

Review: 'Equal Rites' by Terry Pratchett The last thing the wizard Drum Billet did, before Death laid a bony hand on his shoulder, was to pass on his staff of power to the eighth son of an eighth son. Unfortunately for his colleagues in the chauvinistic (not to say misogynistic) world of magic, he failed to check on the new-born baby's sex... The third Discworld novel waves farewell to Rincewind and Twoflower, and introduces us instead to one of the most popular recurring characters of the series: Granny Weatherwax. Granny is a witch, dwells in a remote mountain village named Bad Ass, and is an expert in the field of headology; she is allergic to cats, despises ‘jommetry’, and is wary of people originating from ‘forn parts’. Granny raises goats, grows mysterious herbs, and can inhabit, or ‘borrow’, the minds of animals. She can stare down the toughest of men, engage in shapeshifting duels, cure sick people and deliver babies; but when suddenly faced with a curious little girl who is much more than she seems, Granny is at a bit of a loss. Esk is the eighth daughter of an eighth son, and, due to a mix-up when she was born, has inherited a staff of power formerly belonging to a wizard. When she begins to show signs of magic, Granny Weatherwax takes it upon herself to train Esk in the ways of Witchcraft (herb-growing, medicine making, distilling alcohol, cleaning the kitchen table); but she soon comes to realise that Esk was never meant to be a witch. No, her power is a Wizard’s power, and the only way she can learn how to control it is by travelling to the Unseen University to train amongst wizards. And this is a problem, because there has never been a female wizard in the history of the Discworld: it’s against the lore. The novel follows Esk’s eventful journey to Ankh-Morpork and fraught introduction to the Unseen University. However, while the story is ostensibly about Esk, the majority of page time is given over to Granny, one of my favourite characters of the series. It’s full of comic moments, such as when Granny falls into a bear pit whilst trying to jump-start her broomstick; and in some ways Equal Rites is more about the journey of a very old woman learning lots of new things about a world she’s never really visited. As Granny would say derisively, ‘most people have never set foot outside their own head’, and we come to realise that this actually also applies to Granny herself. Equal Rites is short, light and a lot of fun. The pacing isn’t rushed, but nor does it meander too much, and while it lingers a little on Esk’s first forays into magic this feels necessary for the development of both Esk and Granny’s characters. One thing I will say – something I feel applies to many of Pratchett’s books – is that he’s great at beginning stories, but I sometimes get the sense he doesn’t always know how he plans on ending them. The beginnings of most of his books are excellent, but as he’s dragging us along through the twists and turns it can feel as though he’s inventing the plot as he goes along. That’s the case here with Equal Rites, or so it seems to me. That said, it’s a nice refreshing read, and would be a great starting point for those unfamiliar with the series. 4/5

Review: 'Horns' by Joe Hill Ignatius Perrish spent the night drunk and doing terrible things. He woke up the next morning with one hell of a hangover, a raging headache . . . and a pair of horns growing from his temples. Once, Ig lived the life of the blessed: born into privilege, the second son of a renowned American musician, and the younger brother of a rising late-night TV star, Ig had security and wealth and a place in his community. Ig had it all, and more - he had the love of Merrin Williams, a love founded on shared daydreams, mutual daring, and unlikely midsummer magic. Then beautiful, vivacious Merrin was gone - raped and murdered, under inexplicable circumstances - with Ig the only suspect. He was never tried for the crime, but in the court of public opinion, Ig was and always would be guilty. Now Ig is possessed with a terrible new power - with just a touch he can see peoples' darkest desires - to go with his terrible new look, and he means to use it to find the man who killed Merrin and destroyed his life. Being good and praying for the best got him nowhere. It's time for a little revenge; it's time the devil had his due. As its October, I fancied dipping into a horror novel. Aside from a few teenage forays into King and Herbert, I’m something of a stranger to the genre, but Joe Hill’s work has appealed to me for a while now. I own both Horns and Heart-Shaped Box, but decided to go with Horns as it’s the subject of the group read on BCF. The main impression I had of the majority of the book was “meh”, which is as close as I can get to a verbal shrug of indifference. It’s unfortunate: Horns actually starts off very promisingly. Hill throws us right in at the deep end by having the protagonist, Ig, discover his new predicament – that a nice sharp pair of horns have begun growing out of his forehead – on the very first page. He then proceeds with the story logically and rapidly, with Ig taking a visit to the walk-in centre and accidentally discovering the side-effects of his new pointy accessories: that people he talks to now confess their darkest desires to him without prompting. Worse still, when he makes physical contact with a person, he can see every dark secret and every nasty thing they’ve ever done. However, this quickly becomes repetitive, with every single person he meets wanting to either hurt or have sex with someone they know. After learning that Ig’s girlfriend was murdered a year ago, we’re then treated to long sequences of flashbacks from the early days of their relationship. I have to admit that much of this had me sighing and flicking forward to see when each chapter would end. However, much later on in the book, the flashbacks do become quite poignant, as they reveal just how tragic and probably avoidable many of the events really are. I wasn’t overly-enamoured with Ig as a protagonist, but began to like him more towards the end of the book, when the pace picked up and he began to embrace his new knowledge. I’m a bit disappointed that Horns wasn’t actually scary in any way –after all, I only really picked it up because I fancied a good scare – but it makes up for a lot of that in dark imagery and even blacker humour. It’s not spectacular – in fact, I think it’s one of the weaker books I’ve read this year – but it’s a fairly short, easy-to-read novel with a solid story and a great ending. 3/5

Thanks! I still decided to give it 5/5 because I've thoroughly enjoyed it in the past, and have a feeling I wouldn't have struggled with it had I not been reading it in fits and starts over the course of three weeks.

I finished this last night. On the whole I enjoyed it, but I found it a little dreary in places. I did like that it started with a bang and finished with a bang, but not so sure about most of what came in between . . . although I did enjoy some of the flashbacks that came towards the end.

First review I've seen so far for Half the World, the sequel to Half a King.