5 out of 5 for Filter!

Originally posted on GoodReads.
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/191441064


"Holy wow. Like seriously. I loved this book. No doubt about it. It was perfection. Perfectly combining two stories into one with romance, mystery, and enough suspense to kill me. This is definitely one of my favorites now, and I can barley contain my eagerness waiting for the second book, because IMUST know what happens next.

I have never read a book that switches between two different people that was pulled off flawlessly before. It was always choppy and never meshed well and I ended up not even wanting to finish the book, but that was not the case for this book. I wanted to read more if I could have, it was perfect. And the chapters....what chapters?! It flowed perfectly between the two stories and times. It relieved enough to keep you informed with both sides and help piece things together as it got more and more interesting.

The best part about this book, well I must say, I have two. First, the fact that I was reading these two different stories and throughout the whole book, I never got to fully piece everything together until the ending. Usually, if there is some kind of mystery in a book you find out what it is about half way in, but not with this. It was great, and it kept me reading for more. Wanting to know what the heck was going on.

The second thing I loved about this book was the romance. Between the past romance and the current day, I was swooning every chapter. And I caught myself catching my own breath at some things, reminding myself, hey you should probably breathe or your going to pass out. Gwenn Wright has written a beautiful love story and a beautiful love story in the making. But with love, there is betrayal, and there is also plenty of that.

This book was amazing. I did not want to put it down, I really didn't. I even tried to read slower so I could enjoy everything that was going on, but I couldn't it was just too good. This book is well worth the money, I would have even paid more for it if I had to. Pick this up, I promise you won't want to put it down.

Happy Reading All."

Bunny Cates Reviews Filter!!!

To view Bunny's entire review of Filter: Book One of The von Strassenberg Saga go here:

http://bunnycates.com/reading/2011/07/filter-by-gwenn-wright/

(here's a snippet!)

"My Thoughts:

Loved. It.

..........

......the story is basically page after page of adventure as we try to fit together the pieces of the puzzle. The story is dark, gothic, romantic, and tragic.  Yep, Ole Miss Bunny Cates cried her face off toward the end. 

When you finish a book, and you have to smoke a fake cigarette…that’s when you know you’ve read something amazing.  I totally recommend this one for anyone who enjoys: historical fiction, romance, suspense, mystery, ya

READ IT.  You’ll thank me for it, promise. "

For more awesome reviews from Bunny go here ---->http://bunnycates.com

http://bunnycates.com/reading/2011/07/filter-by-gwenn-wright/

The von Strassenberg Saga ~ 4/5 Stars

Another review on Goodreads.
"I have to admit...at one point in time I almost put this book down. The situation: Raquel, the heroine, is torn between the skinny, pasty boy and the buff, tanned boy who can't seem to keep his shirt on. Sound familiar? Thank goodness I am a bit of a stubborn reader and it takes a lot for me to abandon a book, or else I really would have missed out on a compelling story.

Told as two stories that are invariably intertwined, set in two different eras, Wright creates an engaging plot line in the present of a girl struggling to escape her impoverished situation and the love story in the past that will impact her life. We have only seen the tip of the iceberg of this collision at the close of this first installment. Be warned: we are left with more questions than answers and I was left with a profound lack of closure. 

And unlike the heroine in the series alluded to before, I find Raquel to be a strong mix of toughness, independence, intelligence, and flaw-I liked her. I can't wait to find out what becomes of her and see the unraveling of this masterful web of family dynamics that spans, literally, 100 years."
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/173899535         $2.99 for Nook --->> http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/filter-gwenn-wright/1100248778?ean=2940012882028&itm=1&usri=filter%2bgwenn%2bwright

North of Beautiful

Yes, it's a so-called "issue" book. No, it isn't a sweeping romance or heart-pounding thriller, but it was so real and honest that it actually made me cry several times. Justina Chen Headley, with her strong yet beautiful grasp on prose, writes with brutal honesty in a way that isn't off-putting. She makes you cry, makes you angry, and makes you remember that first, most amazing kiss with the love of your life. This isn't just a story about a girl with inner-beauty issues. It's so much more. It's a book about emotional abuse (the part that made me cry and if you think the dad is over the top and too much to be true let me tell, he isn't), it's a story about adoption and finding your place in the world. It's a story about cheating and divorce and families that are torn apart by selfishness. In short, it a beautifully crafted story about life as it really is. And, I gotta tell you, I love Jacob. Were I fifteen years younger I would totally have a literary crush. I didn't want this book to end. I wanted to stay with Jacob and Terra. I wanted to see her mom fully bloom. Excellent, excellent. I swear Ms. Headley could have stalked me through the worst years of my life, a recorder in hand, some of the dialogue...a lot of it actually....was just too familiar for comfort. Well done! If there were a second, it would be in my hands already. And, as an aside, I would like to point out, do you notice the similarities between this cover and Evermore by Alyson Noel?

Powerful in Pink

To begin, I do not write full-blown reviews. Just more of an insight into whether or not I liked a book and found it worth my time.

I absolutely loved Paranormalcy, with its quirky, fresh take on the paranormal world. Evie is perhaps one of the most vibrant and realistic teenage characters I have ever read. She's a bit insecure, bit of a dork, giddy and shy but filled with power and potential. Even better, she's a GIRL. She wears pink boots and zebra print dresses, totally owning her femininity while kicking undead butt. And Lend? Adore him! I can't wait to read the next installment!

Stay Classy....

In the last few weeks I have been deeply immersed in the world of Reader Reviews. It comes as no shock that teen readers are passionate about their books and the characters thereof. What shocks me is the utter lack of respect given to people of differing views.
Were girls always this mean? I went to high school and there were cliques and rumors but nothing like what I have witnessed on threads on various sites. It stresses me out just reading them. F* off and shut the F* up and then bringing religious beliefs into it. WHAT?! These are most likely the same girls who sing, Give Peace a Chance and scream about religious tolerance.
There is apparently no such thing as intelligent discourse among the young. I guess I should be glad about the reasoning and thoughtful analysis these readers dedicate to the books they read, but No. I can't be. Everything is washed away by the sheer nastiness I have witnessed.
Why? Why treat each other like that? It certainly doesn't show any amount of intelligence. It doesn't speak to any ounce of self-control the reviewer might possibly possess. It doesn't make you look strong and fierce, it only makes it look as though you do not know how to handle yourself in the face of adversity. The snarling and snapping, what does it really amount to? Except to show the world your lack of respect for others. It's almost more than I can handle. It's really just beyond ridiculous. Do me a favor. If you ever do read my book please don't rip apart people who differ with you in their opinion of it. Don't ever defend me (or mock those who would) in a way that tears someone else apart. I'm a big girl and I've faced a lot worse than someone not liking my writing and I would never, ever advocate treating another human being with such a lack of respect.
There's debate and there's shredding each apart. Please, try and learn the difference.

Waiting for Spring ~ An Author's Review

It’s one of those things you do as an independent writer. You offer to read other people’s self-published books and write a review because you need to support each other. Added to that, the author is a friend of a friend of a friend and you kind of virtually know each other, so you want to do the right thing.

So, groaning inside, I offered to read a virtual friend’s eBook. The cover art looked dull and not promising and then I remember, my cover art isn’t so hot either. Good cover art is difficult to come by when you’re an Indie. The story didn’t seem to be my normal reading…not that I have narrow tastes but this didn’t seem to be a fit.

But I’d made a promise. So I started reading.

Waiting for Spring is indeed outside my usual genres but Keller’s characters got their claws into me. They slipped off the page and burrowed into my brain as people I knew and cared about. The story itself is gritty and raw and so real I swear that Keller followed me around and implanted a recording device in my head, capturing my own thoughts and experiences as I dealt with my ex-husband and my own childhood issues.

I kept thinking, how much longer can this story go on, because it’s so real? What else could possibly happen? And it was obvious. Nothing good could happen. So, one day I avoided the book, because I didn’t want to know what bad things would happen to Tess. She had become more than a two-dimensional character. She was me. She was my best-friend in high school, the one who popped a bunch of niacin to get the crank out of her system before the impending drug test she faced. But at the end of the day Tess called to me and I had to know what happened to her. It was a story I couldn’t stay away from.

Waiting for Spring made me laugh. It made me angry. More than once it made me blush and then concede, “Yea, that’s how it is.” And more than once I cried, though I tried desperately not to. As soon as it was over I wondered what the second book would bring and nearly decided not to read it whenever it comes out because I don’t want to know when anything else bad happens to Tess.

But I will buy it because I know Tess, she is so strikingly solid, as are all of Keller’s characters, that she cannot be ignored.

Keller’s powers of observation and her ability to communicate that to the written page are stunning and unsettling. If you have lived a life of any kind of hardship you will feel as though Keller was there, hiding in the bushes, taking notes. I told my husband, “What Gabaldon does with minute, physical detail Keller does with emotional detail. And sometimes it feels a little too personal, as though she’s airing my own dirty laundry.”

But dirt and grit and all, you can’t help but love Tess.
**If peppers were indicators of how explicit a book is....1-5, 5 being the hottest...this one might have six! For Language and ....sexual encounters. 

Sweet Sixteen Princess~Meg Cabot

Insatiable brought me over to the Meg Cabot side.
She's like Tina Fey in prose.
And OMG she is like so funny.
So when I went to our woefully inadequate library in search of her Princess Diaries series (sorry Meg, that was a little after my time, didn't realize that was you, but I loved the movie even if I wouldn't admit to watching it while no one was home) I only found Pants on Fire and Sweet Sixteen Princess.
 For the first couple pages I was all like, "No way! I am so not reading this." I was put off by having to get this book instead of the first and I hadn't realized how very bubblegum they are.
But apparently I like me some bubblegum reads.
I didn't know this about myself until this book. It took all of an hour to read and I was so let down when I didn't find out what JP was going to say to Mia because I so totally wanted him to like her and wanted her to drop Michael (that horndog) and go out with the brooding JP instead and then I cursed my stupid library and resolved to start at book one and read the entire series (in order) because it could so be done in a good lazy day. *breathe*
I was embarrassed as I placed the cutesy pink book on the librarian's desk for checkout...we live in a small town...she knows who I am...she knows I usually read Gabaldon and Grisham and various historical fiction series. My 9 yr. old son would not allow me to check Super Sweet Sixteen out with his card. A man has his limits. But when I took the book back I looked that librarian in the eye and said, "I need to reserve the first book in the series, do we have that at one of the branch locations?"
Well done Meg. I'm going to have a shirt made that says, "Unashamed Fan of Meg Cabot." It's hard to write funny and she writes it well.

Retro Reads Review: Slumber Party~Christopher Pike

Is there anything better than a book you read when you were first falling in love with reading? I grew up as a poor, low-middle class, white girl in Illinois. And when mom started working when I was in third grade and turned my sisters and I into latchkey kids the only upside was a meager allowance. Seven bucks for me, each week, and it was bliss. With fortune in hand I would cross the busy street to what use to be a cornfield and was then partially occupied by a little strip mall. We hated the strip mall, but we loved the little bookstore tucked into it. It was a five minute walk to bliss. In a tiny back room filled with YA paperbacks I met Mr. Christopher Pike and fell in love.
With $7 a week and books costing only half that I was able to quickly amass quite the Pike Collection. Slumber Party was part of that. Sadly my original copy was "lost in the divorce," meaning it was thrown away, but Point Books just published To Die For as a two-fer deal including Slumber Party and Weekend. It's a quick and easy read and far from unpredictable, but Pike is good at getting your heart pumping, because the villain is unhinged and you're not quite sure how it's all going to go down. Pike does, unfortunately have a nasty habit of creating a reading-by-numbers feel. Don't leave so many clues for us Mr. Pike, we're smarter than that. And to be honest, while a lot of the dialogue was spot on for teenagers I found myself often wondering, "Would a teenager actually say that?" It kind of reminds me of the 80's movies wherein all the actors playing teenagers were actually in their early twenties. Fitting because Slumber Party was published in 1985. But still, there's romance and suspense and cat fights and crazy people with lighters. And it's Christopher. And I love him. If you need a few hours of easy amusement, give it a whirl. For me, it's like going home and that's a lovely thing.

Filter~Chapter 1

Nashville, Tennessee

2010

Kevin looks at me and I know he isn’t seeing the little girl I use to be, all pigtails and gangly limbs. He isn’t seeing my mother’s daughter or even my mother anymore. As his eyes linger over me, stopping here and there in the most uncomfortable places, I know he isn’t really even seeing me as I am. The bloodshot eyes staring out of the alcohol-flushed face are seeing a girl, nearly of age, who owes him a tremendous debt of gratitude.

He has had no shortage of women over the years. He kept them from me at first, being careful of what I saw and, disturbingly, heard. But, as I grew older, and he saw that I was not growing into a refined young lady but that the poverty and desperation of our lives has made me something harder, coarser, he stopped caring. There were one-night stands and those who didn’t bother staying more than a few hours; those who got what they wanted, just as he had, who used him just as he used them, and left promptly after. Occasionally one might last a few weeks, but rarely. They didn’t want a man with responsibilities.

I.e. me.

A man with responsibilities and no car and an address that changed at least every fifth month depending on the compassion of our landlord at the time.

I was the only unchanging factor in his life and knew he blamed me for his lack of constants. If he hadn’t done the right thing, if he hadn’t been so good to me and true to the promise he had made to my mother then his life would be different.

But he had been true to my mother’s wish.

She had been obviously pregnant when he had taken her in. And when she had asked him to care for me, he had agreed.

They had pulled me from the hemorrhaging, dying body of my mother and turned me over to the care of the man who was not my father. He had taken me home to their tiny apartment above the old hardware store and done what little he knew to take care of me.

It took less than six weeks for him to realize his mistake. Maybe even less than six hours, but he never abandoned me. He clung to me as though I was the last remnant of some great and powerful love.

And that gave me hope that maybe my mother was really something else and not just some girl who got knocked up by a guy whose name she didn’t even know. She was something special, someone worthy of a man’s loyalty and devotion.

(c)2010 Gwenn Wright

Library of Congress

Evermore~The Immortals

I judge a book's worthiness by how aggravated I get when real life interrupts my reading.
Until the end, I got pretty aggravated each time life pulled me away from Alyson Noel's angsty Evermore. Of the YA Paranormal Romance genre, it's probably the best I've read in a long while. It was something like a mix of the Sookie Stackhouse novels mixed with Twilight mixed with Harry Potter (the point at which I almost stopped reading), mixed with the Vampire Diaries by LJ Smith...with a little bit of the Gemma Doyle series mixed in. And I swear if one more book takes me to a magical meadow, I'm gonna hurl. THIS BOOK WAS SO COOL...until the end. It got so preachy and new agey and preachy (I know I typed it twice). Blech. It was like reading a sneaky promo for The Secret. Just think things and they are. Whatevs! (I have little nieces, can't help it. I also say OMG now, because it sounds so ridiculous I just have to say it.) The ending was a sappy, preachy letdown. For me. This is why I stressed over writing the ending of my own novel, Filter. If the ending sucks you may as well just toss the whole thing out the window. I think there are lot of things in there that teens don't need to be encouraged in but then again, I'm a strict Christian mom. It's not horrible in what it eludes to, but....still. If I had a daughter, she wouldn't read it until she was 16 or 17. Especially with the part about glass blowing. Seriously? I will buy the next book but only because Noel has a good way with words and storytelling. I just hope the next book doesn't preach it's Secret Message at me. I don't need your philosophies. I just want a good story. 

Living Dead in Dallas ~ Sookie Stackhouse

There are circles under my eyes.
I blame Charlaine Harris.
Poor Miss Sookie she just wants to lead her quiet, small town life and love a regular guy but she's hooked on that dang sexy Vampire Bill. Due to her very special "disability" Sookie gets dragged into a job for Bill's boss, Eric (that ridiculously hot blooded Viking) and things just get blown all to heck from there. 
I loved seeing Sookie out of her element. Sookie has gone from barmaid to sleuth and she is the definition of a strong woman. She does what needs to be done and doesn't complain about it along the way. Ms. Harris does a masterful job of enriching the already lush world of Sookie Stackhouse. She's creates a believable world wherein vampires have come out of the coffin and some humans (and vampires) aren't too happy about it. It's a problem for the government, for the average citizen and the other Supes out there. Ms. Harris wisely address them all.
The relationships in the story grow and expand and I'm not even sure whose team I'm on anymore! Sookie's definitely, but Sam or Bill or (egad!) Eric?
It was two in the morning but I immediately moved on to Club Dead.....And now I'm on Dead to the World! I just want to stay by Sookie's side and watch her grow. That's probably the most fun of all, watching a character actually grow and develop and struggle with all of this insanity that been dumped on her church-going self.
Note: With each book Ms. Harris ups the erotic factor. For some, that's favorable, for me, I hope she levels out soon or I won't be enjoying the books. Just like I can't enjoy the television series. Sorry but I am no supporter of porn, no matter how soft it is, others' addiction to it has wrecked my life more than once.
There are some dark, suggestive spots in my own novel Filter, but I never get in to graphic descriptions (it is a YA novel). Speaking of which, my book is $2.99 at amazon.com (If you get it please leave a review! Good or bad! All my reviews have been good so far!) or you can get it for FREE at http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/20957 by using the coupon code BD39K

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks

A few days ago I picked my oldest up from Boys' Camp. For some strange reason he didn't feel inclined to sit in the 96 degree heat while his little brother's attended Backyard Bible Club. So we went to the library instead. My current read (A Great and Terrible Beauty) was in my purse but, being a novel junkie, I started picking more stories out anyway. We wound up having to stack several WalMart full of books when we left.
One of the books, which I chose on a whim, was the Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart, author of Dramarama. It is a cruel world that allows the likes of Twilight to usurp the fun and intelligence of the Disreputable History. But, I guess, you have to be part geek to truly appreciate this novel. It's smart and requires a strong vocabulary. I read the whole thing in a day, despite being at my niece's birthday party for half of that day. Frankie is a girl I can identify with and I hope against hope that we will see her again. Although, I imagine E. Lockhart, being the gifted writer she is, is smart enough to know when to quit. Unlike other authors. She is also gutsy enough to allow her characters to take the unconventional route. Take the time to pick this one up. It's well worth it....If I could be any writer, I would be Diana Gabaldon. Since such greatness is unattainable by mere mortals, I would be more like E. Lockhart. The dialogue is stunning and sharp...it was just so much fun. It made me, as a writer, feel very small and insignificant. I'm gonna hafta up my game

Infinity

For the first time ever I had to take a break from reading an LJ Smith novel.
So instead of finishing Shadow Souls I picked up Infinity: The Chronicles of Nick by Sherrilyn Kenyon. It looked like something my oldest would be interested in but I wanted to read it first before letting him have a crack at it. The lead character is a high school boy and I was afraid that would lead to material unsuitable for a 9 year old. It did. My son can't read it yet, but I enjoyed it.
The writing wasn't the bestest in the world and, at times, the dialogue suffered horribly. Some of the analogies were a little too feminine for a boy book.
But all that aside, it was entertaining. There are zombies and vampires and creatures I haven't heard of all roaming around in good old New Orleans. It only took me two days to get through it. And it's kind of like watching horrible horror movies. It isn't always going to make rational sense, but it's fun. The characters were vibrant and alive and the story sure made me want to drive down to New Orleans.
With some more practice Sherrilyn Kenyon could become a force to reckon with. I even want to read her previously published books, The Dark Hunters.

Working Around the Less Desirable

It's kind of like being a sports fan.
A true sports fan.
Just because your team is playing like trash you don't start booing them.
You press on through the hard times, through the strikeouts and losing streaks.
I am only page....170 maybe of The Vampire Diaries~The Return: Shadow Souls and there have been so many times I have just wanted to throw it down and abandon it. But if you pick around the gunk and know Ms. Smith's work well enough you can appreciate the few gems still shining in there.
This book has just been stupid so far.
Stupid.
The characters don't sound like themselves and again, it's so dumbed down I can hardly stand it. And there is just way too much going on. It's gotten so far out there, it can't come back.
If they're pushing her to write these, they need to stop.
It's making her look

Vampire Diaries: Dark Reunion

I spoke too quickly about The Fury being my favorite of the Vampire Diaries series.
It's been awhile, forgive me, and I couldn't remember the fourth book.
But the first line of the first page brought it all back; all the memories of being twelve and having nightmares that mirrored Bonnie's because the dreams she had were so disturbing to me. The part with the teeth falling out, that was already a nightmare of mine and reading about someone else having that nightmare only caused me to be plagued by nights spent losing my own teeth. I was twelve and I didn't fall in love with Stefan. I was in love with Damon, dark and brooding and self-controlled Damon who is somehow always late but also always just in time.
It took me, cumulatively, three hours to read Dark Reunion, having been swept up by that first line. LJ Smith knows, unlike some authors, how to write action, how to time it so that it takes just long enough to put you on edge so that you want to read every word even though you're frightened to because you're not exactly certain what she'll allow the characters to do.
And she knows romance, not just the simpering fairy tale cottage and the designer clothes ( you know what I'm talking about), the real romance behind all things. The romance that links lovers and the romance that just is the sweetness and terror of life and love, that connects friends just as much as it connects lovers.
I'm a little leery about reading the new books.
I'm almost afraid they were only written for the sake of the show. If so, I want nothing to do with them. I only want them if their existence is due to the fact that Stefan and Elena and the gang truly weren't through with their escapades. I hope they aren't ridiculous.
Let's find out, shall we?
O and by the way, I saw on a certain website that some schmuck is trying to sell a 2001 edition of The Fury for $35. Whoever it is, they aren't a real fan.
I have the original print edition in like new condition. All four of the series. And sweetie, I ain't selling.

Alice I Have Been, the review

It was originally Diana Gabaldon's favorable review of Melanie Benjamin's Alice I Have Been that prompted me to buy the book.

The first twenty pages convinced me that I would not finish the story. It was not gripping me.
But, having already gushed over Gabaldon's review on this blog and going so far as to order it online (the book, not the review), I felt obligated and plodded on....
While Benjamin is not Gabaldon, she is enchanting. She does not write with the scientist's acute observation of the physical world, but she is wise of more internal matters. Just when I was certain I could read no more and longed to move on (to my new Vampire Diaries books) Benjamin swept me away, against my will, might I add because I wasn't certain I could tolerate where the subject matter seemed to be heading.
A lot of writers can't do extreme emotion, particularly anguish....Benjamin did it masterfully to the point that my critical eyes flooded with tears for poor Alice.
I was not left disappointed or empty in the end...and I may just go back to the beginning again one day.

Spring Break Reading List

God is wonderfully kind and opened the gates of sunshine and warmth for us as we were unleashed for Spring Break today. The weather makes me feel hyperactive, which is perfect because though I am not going to Gulf Shores, Alabama or Cancun or anywhere typically thought to be exciting, I am going filming. And this is just the weather I need. Beautiful.

In the moments in between filming interviews and B-roll for a student documentary and catching up on chemistry homework and folding laundry and providing a taxi service etc. etc., I will be working in the garden and reading. 

And writing.

Wow. I haven't written in so long that it didn't even occur to me. It will take a bit of reading to shake off the practicality that has squelched my muse once again. First I must finish MC Beaton's There Goes the Bride, an Agatha Raisin Mystery. And I should probably finish Christopher Reich's Rules of Vengeance. MC Beaton's British cozy was set aside for he sake of homework and editing, couldn't be helped. Rules of Vengeance....I've finished several other books after starting this one, that says something. It's okay, it has its moments, but it just doesn't grip me. There's something impersonal about it. Don't altogether care for it, but it isn't horrible. Reich seems to be one of those technical detail men that lacks in the emotional detail that is necessary to grip readers.

The rest of my list in no particular order:

Breaking Dawn (Yes, I will read it, blerg.) Stephenie Meyer

Alice I Have Been by Melanie Benjamin

Fallen by Lauren Kate (hush, I'm a sucker for a good cover art)

The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe

The Poisoner's Handbook by Deborah Blum

I hope to get through them all...so I can go buy more!

Lord John Grey

Darn the luck.
I had been raptly listening to Dragonfly in Amber by Diana Gabaldon only to finish the first part and find the second (from the library) on reserve. No longer able to bear the hour long drive without an audiobook, I went in search of Outlander. Also gone. Not wanting to dive into the next stories (when it comes to Gabaldon's Outlander series, I prefer to read first and listen later, silly perhaps, but there it is), I picked up Lord John Grey.
To begin, it is brilliantly performed by Jeff Woodman.
At first I didn't remember the character clearly, years have passed since I first read Outlander. So it was a bit of a shock when I realized he was gay. In all honesty I have never read a book wherein the main character was a homosexual man. Or woman for that matter. I called my mother and asked her to remind me of who the character had been to Jamie Fraser.
Ah yes. Him.
Not too certain that I would be interested in the romantic aspect of these stories (sorry, but I do prefer man-woman romances, being a heterosexual myself) I was about to give up on listening to an audiobook that day, but decided to look at it more clinically.
The stories, in and of themselves, though filled seamlessly with the results of heavy historical research (Diana Gabaldon is a master at this), were nothing amazing. Several times I found my attention had drifted and had to back up and find where my mind had meandered. It felt, at times, as though I were just listening to a heavily involved character background (except it was written after the fact). It took until the middle of the third book for me to decide that, despite the sometimes sluggish story lines, I really like Lord John. Were we to meet, he would be a good friend of mine.
Has the Lord John series been worth my time? Yes. Even if I had read them I would say yes. A mediocre work of Diana Gabaldon would be a masterpiece for anyone else. If that makes sense to you. Diana Gabaldon has unparalleled talent, her so-so works are what others would consider to be their masterpieces. And though I long to be done with the last disc and move on to something more thrilling, I will miss Lord John and hope to hear from him again.

Alice I Have Been

I was just checking over my new blog post when an Amazon ad for Alice Have I Been scrolled down. It is a beautiful ad, which is probably the only reason it caught my eye. While I found it intriguing, however, I was not convinced it was worth my time, until I saw the little review at the bottom. "Magic," author of the Outlander series, Diana Gabaldon, calls it.
If Diana Gabaldon, my absolute favorite author, calls a book magic, I'm buying it.
Ironically just this morning I had vowed not to buy anymore books until I have read all the books that are lying around my room waiting for me to read them.
Well, like my diet, that I'll start that tomorrow!
I already bought the book online and, since it was on sale, The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane, or something like that.
Can't wait!