Back after a 7 year hiatus (CBR3 Full Cannonball under my belt) for the 10th Anniversary! Surely a 7 year break renders me ready for this again, right? Must not let review to do’s pile up, must not let review to do’s pile up…….Here we go! Forever judging a book by its cover, I went on a Beatriz Williams kick this summer. Never having read her books before, I was lured in by a few with a flapper on the cover. All things Roaring 20’s […]
You remember Alice? It’s a song about Alice…
Alice hated being interesting. (a couple of times throughout the book but p. 287 is where I recorded it.) I didn’t love it. I didn’t hate it. I’ll probably seek out the follow-up books, but I already know that the thing I think needs to happen–Alice becoming the Queen of Hearts–won’t.
Moldy Cheese and Buckets of Blood…Or NAH?
I’ll tell you this much, Matthew Fleming has quite a few friends who are willing to give him pretty great reviews for his debut novel, The Dreams. I saw it on Book Bub and was intrigued enough to go through and see what the book was about. I was sold, kind of…I saw that Fleming and I share a love of horror, Stephen King, dogs, our spouses and tattoos, so I thought I’d spring the .99 for the book. Oh how I long for the […]
Left me cold
Happy New Year, ‘ballers! This was my third Michel Faber novel. Overall I’ve enjoyed the books and also marveled at his ability to tackle seemingly anything. But…this was pretty thin. The idea is fantastic, but the execution left me unmoved. This guy finds a fifth gospel (“fire gospel” is an inflammatory [<—see what I did there!?] title suggested by a critic after incidents inspired by the guy’s subsequent translation & book). It’s an interesting concept: a pretty cool way to think about the relationship, or […]
I Wonder About Wonder
My book club picked Wonder for this month of January and I decided to be a good book club member (for once) and actually read the book I’m supposed to, rather than the books that I want to read. I read the entire thing in almost one sitting which means that I was avoiding something else in my life (grading and laundry, I stopped to play with some Shopkins and a certain blond 5 year old who wanted me to hang with her). I Wonder […]
More like irritated and vaguely excited
A sequel to Anne Rice’s (The Mummy), the story picks up immediately following the events of the last book, as promised by Rice with the postscript “The Adventures of Ramses the Damned Shall Continue”. Co-written with her son Christoper Rice, RtD:tPoC is about Ramses, an immortal being who was Ramses II – existing incognito as “Reginald Ramsey”, an egyptologist (no really) and his fiancé Julie Stratford, an heiress, newly granted immortality by a secret ancient potion. Set in the Edwardian period, the couple’s adventures are leading […]