future_perfect Posted August 6, 2009 Share Posted August 6, 2009 Bitten is in my list of TBR put i know i'm going to read it and then want to read the rest of the series Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted August 7, 2009 Author Share Posted August 7, 2009 Bitten is in my list of TBR put i know i'm going to read it and then want to read the rest of the series That's exactly the same problem as I've had! I don't know what it is, but if I find a series I like, I have to read the lot as quickly as possible. I've just finished Haunted by Kelley Armstrong, the fifth book of the Women of the Otherworld series. Perfect winding down material after a rubbish week, and an interesting move into another area of the supernatural world Armstrong has created. I'm going to take a diversion from this series next, as I've bought Black Butterfly by Mark Gatiss today, and I loved the first two Lucifer Box books so much, I can't wait to read this one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted August 8, 2009 Author Share Posted August 8, 2009 Well, I certainly wasn't disappointed by the latest Lucifer Box novel, Black Butterfly by Mark Gatiss. After visiting the Edwardian period with The Vesuvius Club, then the Roaring Twenties in The Devil In Amber, Black Butterfly transports us to the 1950's, where artist turned secret agent, Lucifer Box is coming up for retirement and preparing to hand over his role as "Joshua Reynolds", head of the Royal Academy, which is actually a front for one of Her Majesty's Secret Services (a very secret one!). Despite his advancing years, Lucifer hasn't lost his eye for a beautiful face, or his very egalitarian approach to sex. He also hasn't lost his touch for action, investigation and espionage, although his ageing body might tell him otherwise. It's not long before he's on the trail of the suspected murders of some of his friends and contemporaries, all who've died in suspicious circumstances. I love Mark Gatiss' Lucifer Box series. By moving the period setting for each of the three books, we meet our debonair gentleman spy in different eras, giving each of the stories a different, distinctive flavour. Gatiss doesn't try to explain what has happened in the intervening years, merely dropping in tantalising tidbits of detail about missions Box has completed since we last met him, and allowing the story to rattle along at a cracking pace. Full of wit, charm, style and thrills, the book is a wonderful romp, and I adored it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mac Posted August 9, 2009 Share Posted August 9, 2009 This sounds really interesting, Chesilbeach. I hadn't heard of this series. This is another series of books that I'm going to have to fork out for. Damn you for your tantalising temptations, Book Club Forum!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted August 9, 2009 Author Share Posted August 9, 2009 This sounds really interesting, Chesilbeach. I hadn't heard of this series. This is another series of books that I'm going to have to fork out for. Damn you for your tantalising temptations, Book Club Forum!!! I have really enjoyed the series. I read the first one because I loved one of the episodes of Doctor Who that Mark Gatiss had written (The Unquiet Dead), and for me they've got the right mixture of action and comedy, as well as the period settings, make them pure entertainment. The BBC are apparently adapting the first one, The Vesuvius Club for television. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted August 9, 2009 Author Share Posted August 9, 2009 Just finished Broken by Kelley Armstrong. This installment from The Women of the Otherworld series takes us back to Elena and the werewolf pack, and the stories about Elena have been my favourites so far, so this was another good one for me. Perfect entertainment for a lazy Sunday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted August 10, 2009 Author Share Posted August 10, 2009 I finished No Humans Involved by Kelley Armstrong today. I think this has probably been my favourite of all the Women of the Otherworld series so far. The story focuses on Jaime Vegas, and is actually a bit chilling in places, but as always an exciting, action packed book. I've started Dead and Gone by Charlaine Harris this evening, but I'm in two minds how much to read, as it's a hardback and won't fit in my bag, so I won't be able to read it during my lunchbreak tomorrow, and I don't want to get too engrossed, then not be able to carry on with it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mac Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 My god! You read as fast as I don't know what! I feel somewhat intimidated! I think I may be in the Dead And Gone book ring, so I'm looking forward to reading it myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted August 11, 2009 Author Share Posted August 11, 2009 Finished Dead and Gone and now my allegiances have definitely changed. No longer is Mr Edward Cullen my number one vampire, it's totally Mr Eric Northman! I don't think the book was the best of the series, and while I liked the fantasy elements of vampires and weres in Sookie's world, I've think the faeries may be a step too far for me. It was good, and I absolutely loved the character development of Eric, but not my favourite. The only problem is, now I've only got re-reads of the books until the next new installment Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charm Posted August 11, 2009 Share Posted August 11, 2009 The only problem is, now I've only got re-reads of the books until the next new installment I feel your pain Just re-reads and episodes of True Blood to keep us going, you think we'll manage? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted August 11, 2009 Author Share Posted August 11, 2009 I feel your pain Just re-reads and episodes of True Blood to keep us going, you think we'll manage? I hope so At least I've got a few more Kelley Armstrong books to get to, although if I get them at the weekend, even that probably won't last me past the end of next week! Why can't these women write faster Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted August 12, 2009 Author Share Posted August 12, 2009 As I've run out of vampires, werewolves, witches, necromancers, sorcerers and demons, I've had to restort to the normal books on my shelf , so I've started Just Friends by Robyn Sisman today. I'm a bit worried that it might be a bit dated as it's nearly 10 years old already, and recent experience has shown me that chick-lit doesn't seem to stand the test of time! I did enjoy Weekend In Paris by the same author a few years ago, so I'm hoping this one will be good too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted August 15, 2009 Author Share Posted August 15, 2009 I've only read 100 pages in the last three days Succumbed to the 2 for Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted August 20, 2009 Author Share Posted August 20, 2009 American Wife by Curtis Sittenfeld Synopsis from Waterstone's In the year 2000, in the closest election in American history, Alice Blackwell's husband becomes president of the United States. Their time in the White House proves to be heady, tumultuous, and controversial. But it is Alice's own story - that of a kind, bookish, only child born in the 1940s Midwest who comes to inhabit a life of dizzying wealth and power - that is itself remarkable. Alice candidly describes her small-town upbringing, and the tragedy that shaped her identity; she recalls her early adulthood as a librarian, and her surprising courtship with the man who swept her off her feet; she tells of the crisis that almost ended their marriage; and she confides the privileges and difficulties of being first lady, a role that is uniquely cloistered and public, secretive and exposed. In Alice Blackwell, Curtis Sittenfeld has created her most dynamic and complex heroine yet. American Wife is not a novel about politics. It is a gorgeously written novel that weaves race, class, fate and wealth into a brilliant tapestry. It is a novel in which the unexpected becomes inevitable, and the pleasures and pain of intimacy and love are laid bare. I'd been putting off buying this book simply because it looked a weighty tome, but despite this, I kept being drawn to it whenever I saw it in the shop. After a run of mostly fantasy books, I felt the need to pick up something a bit more serious, and when I saw this on offer in Tesco, it was a done deal. I'm so glad I finally decided to buy it. Up front, we are told that the story of Alice Blackwell is "loosely inspired by the life an American first lady", but this loose inspiration has produced a compelling, engrossing book. The first person narrative draws you into Alice's life, but Sittenfeld's style of writing gives the character a remote, almost analytical, voice. Whilst it's not particularly a theme of the book, I felt that she captures the essence of growing up as an only child, and how that shapes the person you become, with a sense of independence and the ability to cope with isolation, even if that isolation is experienced within a marriage. Alice is an intelligent and compassionate, at times vulnerable and flawed, but her story is an incredibly satisfying read, from her childhood in a small town girl through to her life as the President's wife. Whilst the book does eventually deal with Alice's courtship and marriage to Charlie, a thinly disguised George W. Bush, the book deals more with Alice's relationship with herself and her principles, and that was why I was completely drawn into the story. A fascinating, thoughtful and thought-provoking novel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted August 26, 2009 Author Share Posted August 26, 2009 I went back to the supernatural for my next read, and I finished Dime Store Magic by Kelley Armstrong today. Not my favourite of the series, but still good entertainment, cheering me up on a nasty, rainy day. Bought a few books from Waterstone's today, including another Women of the Otherworld series, Personal Demon which I started this evening. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted August 28, 2009 Author Share Posted August 28, 2009 Finished Personal Demon by Kelley Armstrong today - another fun read from this series, with yet more new supernaturals to find out about! Started Living With The Dead by Kelley Armstrong straight afterwards, and then at least I will be done with all the paperbacks in the series, so I can move on to something else next Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted August 29, 2009 Author Share Posted August 29, 2009 Living With The Dead turned out to be a bit darker than the previous books in the series, and the last few pages have left me intrigued as to where the series will go next. The narrative switches between four different characters, a necessity to be able to explain the story properly. It was interesting to have the different views of the supernatural world, although I did think there was one too many plot twists to get to the finale, but it was a minor quibble really, as it was still an exciting adventure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted August 30, 2009 Author Share Posted August 30, 2009 I was totally determined to get off the supernatural stuff and back to normal reading, and I needed to read Twenties Girl by Sophie Kinsella as it has to go back to the library at the end of the week. The problem was, Twenties Girl is a big, heavy hardback, and I wanted something to read in bed last night, so I picked up the much lighter Marked by P.C. and Kristin Cast. I've just put it down, and now I have another series of supernatural books I'm going to have to read Another young adult take on the vampyre mythology, set in a boarding school, the plucky young heroine, the mysterious adult looking over her, the most popular girl is a nasty, selfish young madam - plus, in fact, all the expected clich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Posted August 30, 2009 Share Posted August 30, 2009 Few people seem to be interested in these books recently. Apparently near the end of the third book most people start to think the story is getting a bit repetitive, but then in the fourth it picks up again. I've read the first three. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted August 30, 2009 Author Share Posted August 30, 2009 Unfortunately, I've got one of the weird obsessive type things, where I can't start a series and not read every book in it, so the books would have to get really bad for me not to read them all. I've always been the same - I blame Enid Blyton! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weave Posted August 30, 2009 Share Posted August 30, 2009 Enjoy 'Marked' Chesil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted September 3, 2009 Author Share Posted September 3, 2009 I've actually given up on Twenties Girl and I'm going to wait for the paperback - it just doesn't feel right reading chicklit in a hardback! I finished Betrayed by P.C. and Kristin Cast at lunchtime. I can see what others are saying about the repetitiveness of the books, and I can see them becoming a little formulaic, but it's a series that I'm enjoying, and I know I'm going to end up reading the whole lot! I don't have the next book in the series yet, so I've gone for something completely different next, with Love Begins In Winter by Simon Van Booy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Posted September 4, 2009 Share Posted September 4, 2009 Hope you enjoy Chosen from The House of Night, when you get around to reading it, Chesil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted September 6, 2009 Author Share Posted September 6, 2009 Finished Love Begins In Winter by Simon Van Booy this afternoon. Another excellent collection of short stories, that I'll write a full review for shortly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted September 7, 2009 Author Share Posted September 7, 2009 Had a good reading day today, and finished Oath Breaker by Michelle Paver. This is the fifth book in the Chronicles of Ancient Darkness series, and is another excellent read. The characters development is interesting, and the author is not afraid to take the story in unexpected directions, and deal with difficult themes for young readers. Having said that, I'm glad the next book will be the final one in the series, as I can see how the story is developing, and the final book will bring Torak's journey to a (hopefully) satisfying conclusion. Next up is Brazzaville Beach by William Boyd. I've read a couple of books by this author, and enjoyed them both, and I watched a very interesting interview with him by Mark Lawson last week, so I'm eagerly looking forward to this book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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