Read a Good Book

Pirategeek9 and Calandreya were both interested in things that I read. Normally, I read constantly, but lately it’s been lacking. I just haven’t really found the time to sit down and read a book.

The book series that I am trying to read now is Dresden Files by Jim Butcher. So far, it’s great. You can read my review here. I tend to stick to books more like this. (Vampires, Werewolves, Wizards, etc.) Mostly because I like to escape and these books take me to a place I can never go.

The Anita Blake Novels, Twilight, The Mortal Instrument Series, The Vampire Chronicles, Maximum Ride, etc. These are all favorites of mine. But my all time favorite book is The Giver by Lois Lowry and has been since I was younger. I remember reading it in school and have read it over and over again since then.  I can't even describe it without writing an entire post about just that book, so click here if you are interested.

Growing up I was always into the Goosebumps books and had like every one of them ever made. Then I got into more of the teenage angst books. I read a lot of Sarah Dessen and while she is good, its definitely not my style anymore.

I had actually went on a reading hiatus for a long time and wasn’t really sure which genre called to me. Then my sister gave me Twilight one day. (It was before the movie came out and totally took over everything and everyone started hating it because of all the hype.) I wasn’t too excited about it, because I wasn’t sure if I’d like the whole Vampire fantasy thing.

I read all four books in the series in a week. Then I re-read them. I would skip work so that I could stay home and read. And then I would stay up until the wee hours of the morning reading because I just could not put them down.

My aunt asked me once how she could get her daughter to start reading and I handed her Twilight. Her daughter reads daily, now. She thanks me all the time for the suggestion.

Make fun of Twilight as much as you’d like, but that series is the reason I picked up reading again. And there is a reason so many people are fans.

James Patterson is another one of my favorite authors. He was responsible for the brilliant novels that are Maximum Ride. I’ve read a bunch of his mystery novels too featuring Alex Cross as a detective. They are all page turners.

So, Jumble Mashers, what’s your favorite book?

The Dresden Files

Whew. It’s been awhile since I’ve done a book review. It’s been awhile since I’ve finished a book. Boyfriend talked me into reading the Dresden Files by Jim Butcher. It is a fantasy/mystery series about a wizard named Harry Dresden who finds himself in trouble quite often.

I’ve only gotten to read the first book which is called Storm Front, but it was freakin’ awesome. I bought a three pack set at Barnes and Nobel and absolutely cannot wait to start on the second book. There are 13 books in the series thus far with the 13th one due out in March.

It takes place in Chicago, where Harry works as a wizard private eye and is on retainer at the Chicago PD’s Special Investigation Unit. In Harry’s world, magic, werewolves, vampires, demons, etc. are real, except humans don’t know it. So everyone pretty much gets a laugh out of Harry’s wizard status.

The first book pretty much introduces Harry and the type of magic he can and cannot due. It starts out kind of slow and I had hard time getting through some of the first chapters, but when it takes off, it takes off with a bang. It’s a complete page turner.

Harry is also investigating a series of murders that he believes can only be done by another wizard. But since Harry is the only known wizard in the area, he is a taking a lot of heat.

Harry must find the killer to not only prevent anymore murders, but to also save his own hide. But when the supernatural creatures of his world get wind that Harry is on the case, they will do anything to stop him. But Harry also has friends in low places and incredible motivation to keep on keeping-on.

I really like this series because Harry has a lot of flaws and isn’t completely perfect and good at everything like one Mr. Cullen. He is bad at relationships, but good with magic. Even though he is a wizard though, his magic is limited.

Harry has an awesome sense of humor and is a smart ass most of the time. He is chivalrous and old fashioned. I absolutely adore his character.

There is also a series on TV appropriately called The Dresden Files, but I have heard bad things about it. I refuse to watch it until I’ve finished the series.

Maximum Ride

Best book series ever.

Ok, maybe.

The Maximum Ride novels by James Patterson are truly incredible. They are so exciting! Every page is action packed.

The series is about six kids that were that were bred in a science lab and endured experiments that left them 98% human and 2% avian. Yeah, they all have wings and can fly. They are amazing! Max is the main character and pretty much the leader. They escaped the science lab and have to fend for themselves. Max is like fourteen and has to take care of everyone. She also has to worry about their protection. People from the science lab are always chasing them and trying to get them to come back.

As they grow, they begin discovering that they have more abilities than just their wings. But I won't give those away. These kids are constantly on the run and trying to figure out ways to survive while getting betrayed by people they thought they could trust.

These books are honestly appropriate for all ages although they are listed as young adult science fiction/fantasy books. My dad and my boss read them and absolutely loved them. Not to mention like half of my friends.

There are also graphic novels out and they are making a movie based on the series. BUT it is directed by Catherine Hardwicke who also directed Twilight and pretty much screwed the whole thing up. I can only hope she does better on the Maximum Ride novels.


Speaking of turning books into movies, ya'll should check out Fantasy Casting.

Emancipation Proclamation

Ok, don't hurt me, but I just have to recommend this Twilight Fan Fic.  It's called Emancipation Proclamation and it's absolutely freaking incredible. I'm actually fairly certain that I liked it better than Twilight. But then again, that's not fair because it really has nothing to do with Vampires and Werewolves. In fact, everyone in Emancipation Proclamation is human. Promise. The only thing that links it with Twilight are the characters.

It's a great story about a girl who was born into slavery and is purchased by a wealthy family. The father of said family just so happens to be in the Italian Mob and purchased the slave girl for a very particular reason. This story if full of unexpected twists and turns. It absolutely keeps you begging for more. It's full of romance, hurt, action, and suspense. It's also full of adult content so please, only read if you are 18+.

I'm honestly not trying to to just pimp this story out. The author, Kharrizmatik, needs no pimping. She has thousands of readers and if you aren't hooked by the first couple of chapters, then you'll never be.


P.S. For the record, I do like Twilight and am not afraid to admit it, but I know everyone is getting sick of hearing about Twilight, so that's why I wanted to make sure everyone knows this really is nothing like it.

Anita Blake

I'm going out of town this weekend and I most likely won't be taking my laptop with me, so today you get two more posts to hold you through the weekend. If anyone is even reading this. *Sigh* One day, I'll have readers. One day.

I have just finished the latest book in the Anita Blake series by Laurell K. Hamilton and I must say, the entire series is incredible. Yes, it's about Vampires. No, it's nothing like Twilight. The Anita Blake novels are much more adult and Hamilton keeps the romance to a minimum. They are action packed and full of surprises.

Anita Blake is a license Vampire executioner and an animator-meaning she can raise the dead. In fact, she has an affinity for all the dead. She is also freakin' bad ass. She carries an arsenal of weapons around, back talks the biggest, scariest monsters, and can take one hell of a beating. Hamilton writes Anita's character with loads of sass and attitude.

Here is the Wikipedia description.

The series takes place in a parallel fantasy world where vampires, shape shifters, werewolves, faeries, etc. exist. Her night job, and primary source of income, is the legal profession of re-animating the dead. As an "animator" in a parallel St. Louis, her job entails using magical abilities to bring temporary life to dead bodies in order to question them for legal purposes. She is a necromancer, which allows her to control the dead, including vampires and zombies, but not ghosts and ghouls. She is also a licensed vampire hunter/executioner, with eventual empowerment as a Federal Marshal. In her world this profession involves tracking down and killing vampires who have murdered humans. She is also held in retainer for the Regional Preternatural Investigation Team (RPIT, pronounced Rip-it), which investigates supernatural crimes committed involving magic, vampires, werewolves, and other supernatural creatures.
A strong protagonist in the series, Blake is very direct, flippant, and highly competent in the professions she is involved in. She is trained in judo, kenpo and knows how to use several weapons, but is most efficient with guns (as the series begins, the Browning Hi-Power is her carry gun of choice, though later in the series she switches to the Browning BDM). She is also a devout Christian which often creates moral dilemmas for the character.

So far there are 19 books in the series and the first few have been made into graphic novels, which I of course own and they are equally incredible.

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Nook

Oo! My first post!

Ah hem, anyways. This first post is all about Barnes and Nobel's Nook and its because I just purchased one and I absolutely LOVE it. If you like to read, the Nook is a must have.

I researched all of the e-readers out there before deciding upon this one. The Wi-Fi is what really won me over, but there is so much more! First of all, the price came down to $199.00 from $259.00. It has 2 GB of memory and stores up to 1,500 books. And then you can go and add a memory card if you need even more space. Can you imagine trying to shelf 1,500 books? You would have books up to the ceiling and more. Most of the e-books I've found so far are close to the same price as a paperback you can buy at the store, but I did see some that were cheaper while browsing. You can also download free sample books which gives you like the first 40 pages of a book you are interested in before you buy it. You can also read the e-books for free at the Barnes and Nobel stores.

The actual reading of the book is neat too. You can adjust the size of your font to suit you. You can bookmark pages and the Nook automatically saves the page you left off on. Just simply go to the bottom touch screen and touch "Reading Now" and your page pops right up!

You can shop, play games, try the web beta and access Wi-Fi all from the touch screen. You can also upload your own photos for a custom screen saver, which I think is awesome! The only thing I would change, would be that the big screen was touch, too. Other than that, so far so good!

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