Books 57 through 59 (and a note about #60)

Book #57: 1000 Years of Annoying the French
Long and detailed, yet highly amusing. This book details the long and fractious relationship between England and France, over the past 1000 years (give or take). It did drag a bit by the end, and I admit I skipped the last century or so. Still, this is a good one.

Book #58: The Night Circus (e-book)
I wanted to read this one the moment it hit my radar. I’m very happy to report it did NOT disappoint. Fascinating, slightly creepy at times, and beautifully written, this is a must read. Beautiful book.

Book #59: The Marriage Plot
This one moved oddly, in fits and starts. I considered giving up on it more than once, and thought it wasn’t that interesting….but then it got better. Not a “must” read, but a good one.

Book #60: Lionheart
This is the book that will take me into 2012. I have had little reading time lately, and just can’t finish it by today. So….look for the review soon!

Books 52 through 56

Book #52: The Women of the Cousins War
If you want to know about the Wars of the Roses from the female points of view, read this one. Three authors each write about three very prominent women: Jacquetta, Duchess of Bedford; her daughter, Elizabeth Woodville; and Margaret Beaufort, mother to Henry VIII. All three were powerful women in a male-dominated era and culture.

Book #53: The Dovekeepers
This is an absolutely beautiful book. I have long loved Hoffman’s writing, and this does not disappoint. The story is about the women in a Jewish settlement in 70 CE, and how their lives are affected by the advancing Roman army. READ IT.

Book #54: Mary Boleyn, Mistress of Kings
Weir is one of my favourite authors for a good reason: she knows her shit, and she researches everything in deep detail. This biography of Mary Boleyn is very well-written, and sheds light on many of the myths surrounding the supposed “Flemish Mare.”

Book #55: Second Nature: A Love Story
I have enjoyed Mitchard’s writing for many years (with one exception – a book that was simply too painful to finish). This book is excellent, addressing the issues of transplants (facial, to be exact) and what comes after the transformation. READ IT.

Book #56: The Sun’s Heartbeat
Never in my life have I read a book about science that was so much fun. Totally fascinating, and made very understandable by the author – highly recommend this one. Mind. Blown.

Books 47 through 51

Book #47: The School of Essential Ingredients
Well, this book sealed it: I will no longer read this author. There is zero substance. The stories are brief, and presented as all wrapped up. You don’t get to read about the actual struggles. Boring.

Book #48: Before I Go To Sleep
Wow. This one was a bit of a slow start, and it took time to put it all together, but it was very much worth it! I cannot imagine starting every day without memories…especially those involving my family and children. Read it.

Book #49: The Prophecy (can’t find it on Chapters or Amazon. The number of books with “prophecy” in the title is rather daunting).
This book is set in Elizabeth I’s era, and details Walsingham’s spy network. It was interesting enough, but it felt like it ended in the middle of the story.

Book #50: Bitten
This is the third book I read by Armstrong, and it was completely different from the other two. There was some character overlap, but nothing requiring me to have read anything else by her. I may go back to this author at some point – I’m just not in a rush.

Book #51: Home Improvement: Undead Edition
This was a fun book – full of far-fetched stories about strange paranormal goings-on. There was a Sookie Stackhouse story that drew me in, and the rest were equally good.

Books 42 through 46

Book #42: Becoming Marie Antoinette
This is the first in a series of three books, with the next one coming out in 2012. I am going to read the second one, which is an indication of how good the first one was. This book covers MA’s childhood in Austria, the expectations placed upon her at a young age, and her first years in France.

Book #43: Witches of East End
This wasn’t a terribly deep read, but I enjoyed it. The neatest concept was that the entire town was hidden (sorry, spoiler!) from the world, so much so that people couldn’t always explain how they got there.

Book #44: Spell Bound
This is a continuation of book 38, and was much more interesting. I think I have a thing for witches. Or for the paranormal in general. If you do, too…go read this one.

Book #45: Ready Player One
This book was a full-on 80s geek-out for me. So. AWESOME. Set in 2044, the world has become a nasty place: people live in stacks of mobile homes (one atop the next, like Lego. GAH!), the divide between rich and poor is completely ridiculous, and almost everyone is chasing a big payoff in an online game. The game was created by the creator of the online world, and whoever wins will be rich and very powerful. It was such fun to read about so many 80s phenomena: Pac Man, War Games, and Back to the Future, to name a few. READ IT.

Book #46: The Rogue: Searching for the Real Sarah Palin
I have been horrified by SP since she burst onto the US political scene in the last election. She is probably my least favourite person on the planet. So why did I read a book about her? Because I wanted to see if there was any reason for my gut-level reaction to her. Turns out there are many. I don’t know how much of this book is true, and I’ve read some scathing reviews about it. I prefer to think that my gut is on the right track, and that SP should stay off the national stage.

Books 37 through 41

Book #37: Joy For Beginners
This was a very easy read. VERY. It had no heft to it, and each story was wrapped up perfectly, with all the hard/dirty/difficult things hidden away.

Book #38: Waking the Witch
It’s probably not a good idea to jump into a book series mid-stream. It worked out for me, though, since this book is connected to, but independent from, the other books by the same author. It’s not as if I had to have her other books read to understand the story. An interesting read, nothing too deep with the characters, good honest fluff.

Book #39: Let the Great World Spin
I couldn’t understand how all the stories and people in this book would interconnect…it’s definitely not obvious at first. The author does a beautiful job of keeping you a little bit off-kilter, wondering how it all ties together. It’s a great book. Read it.

Book #40: Robopocalypse
This book is AMAZING. I couldn’t put it down, and am happily awaiting the big-screen version – I’m certain it will be a movie someday. SO GOOD. Go read. Unless you’re like my friend C, who is deathly afraid of robots. There are kind of a whole whack of them in the book.

Book #41: Sisters of the Sari
This book was very well-written, and gives you a glimpse into the caste system in India. The American protagonist tries her best to ignore the “rules” in India, with mixed results. Read it.

Books 32 through 36

It’s December 31st. The likelihood of me finishing all of my 2011 book reviews? Slim to nil. I will try, however. And to make it easier, I’m grouping the reviews in batches of 4 5. It’s not like I’m a master of the in-depth review. Really, this is a way for me to record what I read, whether I liked it, and whether I recommend it. Go find someone who can actually write about books if you require depth.

Book #32: The Distant Hours
I like this author, and was not disappointed by this book. Haunting, and perhaps a bit too sad, it was still very good.

Book #33: A Hollywood Ending
Total fluff. The fact that the main character became a totally different person by moving to Britain did not impress me. So not believable.

Book #34: The Weight of Silene
This was a very heavy book, with some rather depressing happenings and themes. However, it was very well written, and I would definitely recommend it.

Book #35: Pulse
Sometimes, I’m not in the mood for a full novel, so I pick up a book of short stories. This one was especially excellent – the people seemed real, with their flaws and problems on display. Read it.

Book #36: Popular Crime: Reflections on the Celebration of Violence
This was a good read, full of interesting stories, and why we are obsessed with crime stories. However, the author’s self-congratulatory, “I am SOOO much smarter than the average criminal (and YOU, the reader)” attitude soured me after a few chapters. Still, if you can stand the ego, it’s a good read.

December?

Once again, I find myself at the almost-end of a year, wondering where the hell it went. This “getting older” thing is becoming a bummer. The days, weeks, months and years scream past me, and I feel as if I can barely keep up.

Random-ish thoughts:

The puppy, who weighed only 8 lbs when we adopted her in early September, is at 40 lbs and still growing. She’s still cute, and super-cuddly, which we love.

I started my latest insurance designation in May 2010, and the thought of 10 (TEN!) courses seemed so daunting. In January, I write exams five and six. Of ten. Is that the glimmer of a light at the end of that tunnel?

It’s looking like I’ll finish my 2011 book reviews sometime in 2012. Unless I use my time off tomorrow and next week to do them. Which I won’t. Well, maybe. I’m having trouble getting through books right now. It’s possible I’m slightly depressed. Dead dog + lost cat (who I still miss, and assume is dead) + 2nd lost cat (who I didn’t really want, and who is back) + winter’s dark arrival + a big, overwhelming THING I cannot blog about = FML. Thinking of taking up meditation, since having two out of two adults in this household on meds seems greedy. I will continue going to the gym – trying so hard for daily – and see what happens.

I am going to tempt the fates and state that I believe that our puppy is 98.475388173417% house-trained. She asks to go out, and the puppy pads are lovely and pee-free of late. I am giving her that 1+% JUST IN CASE.

Christmas is shaping up to be fun. Wish I could get into the right mood. We’re traveling to be with family – 17 of them, to be exact – and will have six kids on Xmas morning. That should be an experience! My seestor is overjoyed that we’re doing this…me, I’m thinking of the drive, and the packing, and everything else I have to do. Oh, and I’m fairly certain that some of the gifts my children will be receiving for Xmas are going to horrify and shock my cousins. Yes, my boys play violent games. I am THAT mother. Judge away.