Kell

No, they are all completely stand alone and completely different. I wouldn't recommend for yougner teens as there is some *ahem* "bad" language in them that parents may prefer not to hear their kids repeating, but older teens and adults alike will love them. As for The Plucker and The Child Thief, they may be based around toys and a childrens' story repectively, but they are most definitely NOT aimed at or suitable for children. Strictly for the grown-ups. I was that kid too - LOL!

Having already managed to infect many members of the forum with Otherworld-itis, I felt it was time to try and introduce another author to the masses in the hopes that many of you will become similarly infected with love of his work. The author in question is Brom (aka Gerald Brom) who is an artist and writer of immense talent. His first illustrated novel was The Plucker, a nightmarish tale with a whimsical element that is stunningly illustrated by the author. Both words and pictures are filled with a dark beauty. The Devil's Rose was his second illustrated novel and was darker and bleaker still, but with Brom's trademark artwork being the perfect accompanyment to the eloqeunt writing. Most recently, Brom has published The Child Thief, his first full-length novel based on Peter Pan but once again looking at the darker side of one of the most beloved children's tales. SYNOPSES FOR ALL THREE BOOKS (from Amazon): THE PLUCKER The Plucker is a dark and twisted tale about a Jack-in-the-Box, aptly named Jack, who must fight for the life of his "human boy owner" against an evil force, called the Plucker (because he plucks your eyeballs out and sucks out your life force). One by one the Plucker and his minions, called Foulthings, capture the toys in the boy's room, and carry them off to the bowels of the earth, deep beneath the boy's house. There the toys are tortured and have their mojo extracted. The toy's mojo comes from the boy's love and his belief that the toys are real, so as the Plucker sucks up all the toys's mojo, he begins to take over the boy's body. Only Jack can save the boy, with the help of the boy's nanny, Mabelle, who practices the dark arts. Spine-tingling and creepy, the story is for all ages, but especially for those in love with graphic novels, fantasy, and sci-fi. [/url] THE DEVIL'S ROSE From the creator of "Plucker" comes another illustrated novel, set in Texas and hell. Escapees from hell fill the pages of this book, terrifying and slaying the living as they try to flee their guards from the underworld. Cole, one of the undead, has been sent to reclaim these souls in flight and return them to the fiery depths. But one escaped soul is not like the others: Rath. He in fact wants to return to hell. But why? And why does Cole, a tormented soul from hell strive to capture his fellow mates? It has to do with a woman named Rose, who he did wrong and a pact he made with the devil. THE CHILD THIEF In the vein of Gregory Maguire's bestselling works, the award-winning artist Brom takes us on a haunting look at the true world of Peter Pan, in his first full-length novel. From modern day New York to the dying land of Faerie, "The Child Thief" reveals the world of Peter Pan through the eyes of an insecure runaway who is seduced by Peter's charm. But any dreams of a fairy wonderland are quickly replaced by the reality of life and death survival as Peter's recruits are forced into a lethal battle in which the line between good and evil is blurred. As someone who isn't really into graphic novels, I was so surprised to find myself a major fan of a graphic artist and his illustrated novels - believe me, there's such beauty to the pictures that anyone, even those who don't "do" graphic or illustrated novels, will love to look at them. I've read both The Plucker and The Devil's Rose and rated both of them 10/10. I'm part way through reading The Child Thief and if it continues to be as good as it has been so far, it will surely be another 10/10! I don't think I've ever before come across someone who has such as way with both images AND words.

I planned to spread them out over the year too, but I've already read one and started the 2nd - LOL! The first 4 are re-reads but I'm dying to refamiliarise myself with them so I can read the rest of the series!

TO anyone planning on reading The Eyre Affair - please do read Jane Eyre first as you will get SO much more out of TEA if you do. It's all very well knowing the basics of the plot, but if you've read the whole book SO many more of the "in-jokes" will make sense and it'll be a FAR funnier read. And Jane Eyre is also a fantastic book in its own right so I recommend it even if you're NOT planning on the Jasper Fforde!

I hope everyone has fully recomvered from their New Year celebrations! OK, time to start with the questions (which I lifted from Reading Group Guides). 1. Why would society make "being a pedestrian" a crime? (Clarisse tells Montag that her uncle was once arrested for this.) I found this concept rather an interesting one and when it was first brought up I wondered how/why on earth such a thing could be banned. Then I realised I was pondering this whilst walking down the street and realised that was exactly the point! I was thinking while walking around because I didn't have to concentrate on driving a vehicle (well, I was pushing a pushchair, but that doesn't take a great deal of concentration - LOL!). If society is being encouraged not to think, then passing laws against aimlessly walking around would most lkely be a very natural extension of that. I know that in some places people are though of as being quite crazy if they decide to walk anywhere. I remember reading a bok set in LA and the main character got some really odd looks and comments when they announced their intention to walk somewhere rather than take a car. No offence to folks in LA, but it's the home of the movie industry - an industry that specialises in (often) mindless entertainment. In Fahrenheit 451, people seem to be tuned in to visual or audio entertainment 24/7 and it reminded me of that...

I loved The Eyre Affair - very funny. And THe Graveyard Book was one of my favourites from last year. Happy reading!

I really liked The Truth. THe Industrial Revolution Discworld books are all great.

Yes, I liked the JtR aspect too. Sorry you didn't enjoy it more, Paula - I thought it was pretty good, but some of the characters were a bit lacking and I would have liked to see less whining from QH and more development of Bathory.

You have some great reads ahead of you there! Perfume is one of thoe total-sensory-immersion-type books and is so unusual. Jane Eyre is one of my favourite novels and Kelley Armsgtrong one of my favourite authors, so another 2 good'und there. I also read I, Claudius a little while ago, so I've been meaning to get hold of Claudius the God and will be looking forward to hearing your thoughts on it!

You have some AWESOME reads ahead of you! You actually have some of my all-time favourites on your TBR list - Lolita, Northanger Abbey and Jane Eyre. Happy reading!

Still Me by Christopher Reeve is such an inspiring and uplifting read, as is the 2nd one, Nothing Is Impossible. I read them a few years back and was blown away by his determination. I also want to read Always Looking Up by Michael J Fox. His first one, Lucky Man, is also excellent and, again, inspirational. It's amazing to read what these people have gone through and how they can still remain positive and see their condition as actually having a positive impact on their lives.

I read The Stepford Wives a few years back and, like you, although I found it dated I thought it a fantastic read.

I recently read and enjoyed Poison Study too and plan on getting hold of the sequels in the near future. Unexpectedly great writing when I was expecting a quick, non-challenging read. A really tight plot with great characters.

If you've not already read them, you might like to try the Southern Vampires series by Charlaine Harris (I read the 1st 4 when they first came out but am now re-reading them and then continuing with the series). There's more sex in those, but not too gratuitous and they're very good. There's also the Undead series by Maryjanice Davidson. They're more comedic, but a lot of fun to read (I've only read a couple of those though). And of course, I highly reccomend Kelley Armstrong's other two series: Darkest Powers trilogy (which, although Young Adult, are brilliant and are set in the same "universe" as Otherworld) and the Nadia Stafford books (which, although not supernatural, bear the Armstrong mark of excellence).

Hope you enjoy the Kelley Armstrong books. Have you already read the other Women of the Otherworld novels? (I think I read that you had, but I'm half asleep now and can't remember for sure).

Hurrah! Another potential Kelley Armstrong fan! I'm so pleased.

I've read ALL the books by Kelley Armstrong and can honestly say you have a mojor treat coming. And I am very proud of the amount of people I seem to have infected with Kelley-Armstrong-itis! Now I just hope to do the same with the works of Gerald Brom (a spontaneous outbreak of Brom-itis would be wonderful!). I've started with Paula - I know she's hooked already - LOL!

I started reading The Child Thief by Brom - a dark tale based on the Peter Pan story. I'm only about 20-odd pages in but I have to say, I already think this could be one of my favourite reads of the year! Brom is a stunning artist and writer and i gave both his previous illustrated novels (The PLucker and THe Devil's Rose) 10/10. If this continues as well as it has started then I can see this one joining the other two with top marks!

My top 5 from last year are: 1. Brom - The Devil's Rose (illustrated novel) Brom's art is dark and beautiful and his words are certainly equal to the pictures in the book. He's a supremely talented individual and everyone should read his books! 2. Christopher Brookmyre - A Snowball in Hell It's not part of a "series" as such, but it's best to read The Sacred Art of Stealing before this one, just to get everything in context. However, it's brilliant in its own right. Brookmyre is one of the finest writers of our generation, mixing gritty crime with dark humour seamlessly. 3. Sturt Macbride - Logan McRae series The one I read last year was the most recent in the series, Blind Eye, and I rated it a firm 10/10. Macbride is fast becoming THE Scottish crime writer to contend with and this, the 5th book in the series set in Aberdeen (which starts with Cold Granite) is absolutely superb (as are the rest of the series, to be honest). 4. Neil Gaiman - The Graveyard Book I read the version illustrated by Chris Riddell and both the writing and illustrations are fantastic. It's a YA book, but there's more than enough there to keep grown-ups hooked too. 5. Kelley Armstrong - Women of the Otherworld series Again, it was the most recent books in the series that I read last year (Living with the Dead and Frostbitten) and they are great additions to the series. If you like paranormal/supernatural stuff but like things to actually be believable, then Armstrong's Otherworld series are definitley the books to read - you really could believe that you could be living next door to a werewolf and not even know it!