Calculated in Death, JD Robb

Eve Dallas is BACK! :)

Ok, so this wasn't one of my favorites. It might actually be my least favorite. It was a lot of money stuff - in case you hadn't guessed by the whole "Calculated" thing - which isn't really my thing. But there was, as per the usge, a healthy dose of murder and mayhem.

A murder that looks like a mugging but isn't and the coincidences just keep piling up. The case wasn't anything specially. A conspiracy and some dumb as shit criminals.

As always, the interactions between the main characters are enjoyable. There's one part where Peabody uses her feminine wiles to draw a baddie out of his house. It's probably the best part.

There's some Eve and Trina action in there too. I don't think I've mentioned Trina before. She's Eve's hair and makeup guru...well, Eve would call her a hair and makeup torturer.

There's some Roarke and Eve cuteness. He's still worried about her. Not that he ever stops, but her experiences in New York to Dallas have made it harder. She manages her hurt herself catching a baby. Well, really a toddler. She's chasing one of the baddies and he throws the kid like a football. Eve catches it, but pays for it in bruises. Pretty epic either way.

Eve's continuing to evolve, discovering what it means to have friends and family. And I enjoy that. I'm really looking forward to the next one: Roarke's family is coming for Thanksgiving. :D

Calculated in Death, JD Robb

A Nose for Justice, Rita Mae Brown

So, this was a bargain buy and I was going out of my comfort zone. If it wasn't $3, I probably wouldn't have gotten it. And that would have been ok. I'm not saying it was bad, but it wasn't good. Kind of boring.

So, it's copyrighted for 2010, and I feel like that makes a bit of a difference. It was very political. I'm of the opinion that all stories have meaning - the author can't not put a bit of themselves and/or their views into their stories. So, I'm not surprised to find a bit of politics or religion or anything else in books the I read. Frankly, I think it makes it better. More relatable. But this was overtly, intentionally political. And I don't feel like that made it better. Not worse either, but not better. It didn't add anything of value.

On a higher note, the dogs were adorable. They play an important role and the reader understands what they're saying, so that adds some fun.

Other than that...I just don't have much to say. There are some explosions, the baddie trying to freak everyone else out about water. There's a lot about water and water rights. And a Russian from the late 1800s is found when they're remodeling a barn. There's no connection between the 2. And don't let the book fool you when it says there's a "fascinating connection" between the body, Buffalo Bill, and the ranch. There isn't.

There's a love story between the main character Mags and the Deputy Sheriff. It, like the rest of the story, is just blah, ho-hum, mundane. However you want to word it. Mags is a former Wall Streeter who lost everything in the crash. The Deputy is a divorce who loves Reno. *shrug* Mags being a good Wall Streeter is about the only interesting aspect.

Well, her aunt is occasionally badass, and I appreciate the feminist aspects the story uses. But overall, this was just a forgettable book. And, really, isn't that worse than being bad?

A Nose for Justice, Rita Mae Brown

Kiss the Dead, Laurell K. Hamilton

So, it's still Read a Romance month, so next up is some hot and steamy Anita Blake.

However....it wasn't one of my favorites. The plot was just kind of...lacking. Wah wah. Basically, a group of vampires want to be" free." Unfortunately, their methods for doing that are to kidnap a minor and then martyr themselves (aka suicide by cop - or executioner, in this case). The have a leader, a master, but they haven't blood oathed. Somehow the master misses the part where he can influence lesser vamps without a blood oath.

So, when they're around him, he can keep them on board with his plan for peaceful dissent. Unfortunately, when he's not around, his mojo wears off and they decide being martyrs and killing cops is the better plan.

Sigh.

Antia ends up setting them straight. That's basically the entire book plot wise.

Now, relationship wise, there was much more.

More Facebook fun

Since I've been a little slow posting, I thought I'd try to make up for it with some fun and games. Here are some more memes found on Facebook.

Enjoy!

The Historian, Elizabeth Kostova

"...The Historian is the story of a young woman plunged into a labyrinth where the secrets of her family's past connect to an inconceivable evil: the dark fifteenth-century reign of Vlad the Impaler and a time-defying pact that may have kept his awful work alive through the ages. The search for the truth becomes an adventure of monumental proportions, taking us from monasteries and dusty libraries to the capitals of Eastern Europe..."

Nothing in that said "vampires" and "Dracula" to me.

I mean, yes, I know Vlad the Impaler is the...inspiration, let's say, for Dracula, but nothing there indicated that's the route she was going. To me. Now, had I read the quoted blurbs, I wouldn't have been surprised when vampires made their appearance, but I never do. It's not like they're going to put ones that say the book sucks, or could be written better. So, I don't bother.

So, yeah, vampires.

Guess what time it is?!

It's read a romance month!!

No, really, it's a thing.

Never heard of it? Me neither. Until Suzanne Brockmann had it on her page. I intended to let you all know when I made my first August post....yeah, still waiting. Sorry 'bout that.

Anywho! Check out the R-A-R website for blogs, contests, and other fun stuff!

See you soon!!

The Last Testament, A Memoir by God

So....God is a psychopath. And a narcissist. And a sadist. And, well, just an all around asshole.

That's my takeaway from this book.

At this point, I should probably give my disclaimer, but I'm not going to. I feel like you've got the idea from the first line. And the book's title.

Look. The book has it's funny bits, but frankly, it's just too long to stay funny. The last 75 pages is just the original Revelations next to the "revised" version. It was definitely funnier to start, though it did tend to be a bit cynical at times. Maybe even mean spirited.

An example of a good part is when "Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind," is explained to mean that you shouldn't cut off a man's genitals, use a knife to carve a slit where they were, and insert your penis so you can "lie" with him as a woman.

Oh, and God did create Adam and Steve, he just changed his name to Eve post-op.

But the only thing I can say I really loved for it's value, and not it's sarcasm or humor, was almost at the end, where it says, "Blessed are they that make a reasonable attempt at abiding by as many of my (Jesus') teachings as possible, whether or not they believe in my divinity..."

And I'm going to stop there. I can quote things, or give chapters (the ones on America are pretty good), but that's about it. There aren't any characters or plot to dissect. So, final verdict: Not bad, but too long.

The Last Testament, A Memoir by God

Reading Keeps You Sharp

I know it's been a while - I'm working on it! But here's some book news to tide you over. Looks like reading may be an addiction that has some benefits...

July 3, 2013

Being a Lifelong Bookworm May Keep You Sharp in Old Age

Reading, an activity that stimulates mental processes, can help preserve memory skills as we grow older. Photo by Flickr user Spirit-Fire

To keep their bodies running at peak performance, people often hit the gym, pounding away at the treadmill to strengthen muscles and build endurance. This dedication has enormous benefits—being in shape now means warding off a host of diseases when you get older. But does the brain work in the same way? That is, can doing mental exercises help your mind stay just as sharp in old age?

Experts say it’s possible. As a corollary to working out, people have begun joining brain gyms to flex their mental muscles. For a monthly fee of around $15, websites like Lumosity.com and MyBrainTrainer.com promise to enhance memory, attention and other mental processes through a series of games and brain teasers. Such ready-made mind exercises are an alluring route for people who worry about their ticking clock. But there’s no need to slap down the money right away—new research suggests the secret to preserving mental agility may lie in simply cracking open a book.

Click the link below for the whole article:


Read more: http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/science/2013/07/being-a-lifelong-bookworm-may-keep-you-sharp-in-old-age/#ixzz2aTBsbdyq Follow us: @SmithsonianMag on Twitter

Stormlord's Exile, Glenda Larke

I feel like I should really title this "Ode to Fantasy Fiction." I think I'm a fairly eclectic reader,  generally speaking. Maybe, with the common thread of something different, something not easy to figure out. I like to be surprised. I mean, it's fine to know that everything is going to work out in the end, but that's just common sense. I feel like this book is a really good example about what fantasy fiction can really bring to the table.

It's kind of...coincidental that I picked this book after finishing Unholy Night. In that review, I tried to focus more on matters of faith than religion. That's not going to be possible in this one. So, I'll repeat my disclaimers: 

1)      If you are hyper religious, and find any negative portrayal of religion bad or blasphemous, don't bother with this book or review. You'll probably just be unhappy.

2)      If you are hyper non-religious, and don't see the point in discussing religion you may want to stop reading this review here. I'm going to go into the thoughts religion, which you may not enjoy.

See, one of my favorite things about the fantasy genre is it's ability to criticize society without pissing anyone off because the people/places/things they criticize aren't real. How can you get pissed they're criticizing a religion/politics that don't exist? This book does that and more.

OK, confession time: I don't really remember the first 2 books in the Watergivers trilogy. I vaguely remember them, broad strokes, but the details? Nope. Not really. But I've got enough to sketch out the world for you.

Unholy Night, Seth Grahame-Smith

This book is the tale of the three wise men, as imagined by the author of Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (which was excellent, BTW - way better than the movie.).

As this book involves some religious figures, and that can be a touchy subject, I should start with 2 disclaimers:

1)      If you are hyper religious, and find any fictional portrayal of Christian figures as bad or blasphemous, don't bother with this book or review. You'll just be unhappy.

2)      If you are hyper non-religious, and don't see the point in discussing religion you may want to stop reading this review here. You may enjoy the book as a straight work of fiction, but I am going to go into thoughts on the religion it touches on, which you may not enjoy.

OK, so, the book is not about Jesus. Or Mary and Joseph. Well, maybe the holy couple a little. Sure, the holy family is in it, but it's not about them. The main character is a thief named Balthazar. He's more the kind of guy who might follow disclaimer number 2. He's murdered, he's stolen, he has no remorse, and certainly no faith. We meet him as he's riding across the desert attempting to evade the Judean soldiers chasing him. He's stolen from the governor of a nearby town.

He doesn't make it. 

WWZ Follow-Up

Happy belated Independence Day!

I know this is a book blog, not a movie blog, but since I saw the WWZ movie on the 4^th, I wanted to write a follow up comparing it with the book.

As I said in my book review, there's no way the movie could possibly follow the book, so I had high hopes. And they were not misplaced. The movie was really excellent. I recommend it.

For one thing, it wasn't really gory – a rarity among the zombie genre and a breath of fresh air. This also opens it up to a wider audience of those who don't go for the gross-out aspect of most zombie movies. They do such a great job of making the zombies terrifying, but not gory. Even attacks aren't really bloody. The zombies are fast (love that!) and animalistic. They also stay true to the book's idea the zombies use sound to track prey. And that the moans (bordering on screams in the movie) are used to communicate between them, signaling the presence of prey.

Darkness Bread, Stella Cameron

So, after I finished Shadow of Night, I had to pick a book to distract me. I happened to be on vacation, so my choices were limited. As I said in the review of Shadow of Night, all I wanted to read was the third book of that series. I didn't have that, so I chose this one.

I'm repeating all this because this book had an uphill battle. This is a book from the Chimney Rock series which focuses on a pack of werehounds. The werehounds have been dying out, along with all the other shifters. The females are dying during pregnancy with their children. The first book of the series, Darkness Bound, explains all this. I read it pre-blog, so it's not reviewed, but the basic idea is the leader of the pack, Niles meets and falls for his mate, Leigh. Sean, the main character of this story is Niles' second in command and plays a large part in protecting Leigh. We discover Leigh is a particular race that is thought to have no magical abilities, but actually just has very rare ones. The idea is that these rare abilities would allow them to carry children for the werehounds (don't worry, I'll come back to this one in Feminist Corner).

During the first book, we also meet Silkywidden, a mysterious cat. Well, she is also a shifter, and part of the same race as Leigh. She and Sean have fallen in love while acting as go betweens for Leigh and Niles in the first book. This book starts with the necessity for a decision: Can Sean and Elin (Silkywidden) be together? Niles is concerned because Elin is fey. She's not, but she's not telling anyone that because she wants to make sure Sean wants her, not just her possible reproductive abilities (again, I'll come back to this, patience). See, Elin was kidnapped as a baby and raised by the fey Queen. Niles is worried Elin is a spy for the Queen - and to be fair, the Queen does want her to do that. She's refused. Leigh already suspects Elin's true origins, and she sees the love between the two, so he's firmly on their side. Niles is harder to convince. In the first book, they encounter a traitor among the hounds, this seems to put them all in a distrusting mood.

Shadow of Night, Deborah Harkness

OMG!! I CAN'T WAIT FOR THE NEXT ONE INDEFINITELY!!! THERE'S NOT EVEN A RELEASE DATE YET! OR A TITLE! WTF am I going to do?!?! *whine*

Obviously, I liked it. And I was devastated when I finished that I have to wait an indefinite amount of time. In fact, all my other books looked boring - all I wanted to read was book 3.

To catch up anyone who hasn't read my review for the first book, A Discovery of Witches and this one are part of the All Souls Trilogy. I'm not surprised at all this book won the 2012 Goodreads Choice Award for Best Paranormal Fantasy.

At the end of the first book, witch Diana and vampire Matthew escape into the past in an attempt to find a teacher for Diana and keep the council, the group that ensures the agreement keeping the species/races separate is kept, from attacking again. This book starts as Diana and Matthew...land(?) in 1590.

Matthew is Matthew Roydon, an actual historical figure little is known about, and is friends with many other historical figures such as Sir Walter Raleigh and Christopher Marlowe, known as Kit. Kit is actually not a fan of Diana. He's jealous of her really, as Matthew loves her, not Kit. Most of these friends, including those I just mentioned, are part of the School of Night. Through the book, Diana, a historian, gets to meet many other figures Rabbi Loew, Queen Elizabeth, even Emperor Rudolf.

Possession in Death, J.D. Robb

This one is 31.5 in the Eve Dallas series, falling between Indulgence in Death and Treachery in Death. I didn't review Indulgence here, obviously, so as a quick recap Eve investigates a series of murders. She discovers they're a part of a game (literally) between two rich dudes (think the Koch brothers) for a bet of $1.

This book starts right after she leaves one of the murderers after interrogating him. She's distraught at the waste of life. For no other reason the "entertainment." She arrives home just in time to entertain her friends (her family really, though not by blood) at a BBQ - a great scene.

As she's driving one of her guests home, she sees an old woman covered in blood. The woman is a gypsy and Eve unknowingly makes a pact with her. Eve agrees to find the woman's granddaughter, a ballet dancer - she doesn't seem to care much who killed her lol.

Anyway, the woman's...essence? in Eve's head causes Eve to see and talk to ghosts. She also starts taking on the woman's characteristics, such as speaking Russian like a native and getting the woman's ankle tattoo. She of course saves the day in the end.

This was probably the most supernatural of the books so far. There have been some elements in previous stories, but this was almost primarily about paranormal abilities and Eve's abilities in the vein. Still, good 'ol Eve rejects anything she can't explain, which leads to some interesting rationalizations.

Another short and sweet quickie.

Possession in Death, J.D. Robb

World War Z, Max Brooks

No. I'm not reading it because of the movie. It's been on my list for a while, though the movie was an impetus not to wait anymore. The book is always better than the movie, and I find I'm not as excited to read something after I've seen the movie.

I did enjoy this book, though I found it to be a tad depressing. Not surprising, given the subject matter. What I did not expect was the format. I didn't realize until I bought it that it was an "oral history." It's written like a history book, a collection of survivor accounts, not a novel. Now, this is not really my thing. As you've gathered if you've read my other posts, I like characters and character development. That doesn't really work with this format. That being said, I was still riveted.

Plus, I think the format makes it more possible the movie will stand up against the book. See, there's no one Brad Pitt character that carries through the whole book. There is one person who gets 3 entries in the book, but nothing as consistent at what appears to be in the movie – if previews can be believed. And the name on IMBD is not one I recognize from the book. But I think that's going to make it better for the movie. There are fewer expectations for the character and the plot. They'll be too different to compare them. 

The Wolf Gift, Anne Rice

I always feel like I should be more excited after an Anne Rice than I am. It's not that that I dislike her books; I just don't feel drawn to them. And it seems like I really should! I love all that supernatural stuff – vampires and the like. Somehow, the reality just never lives up to my expectation.

Now, I don't claim to be a Rice aficionado, definitely not. I've read The Witching Hour, the first book in the Lives of the Mayfair Witches trilogy. Frankly, I was not a fan – clearly, since I didn't read the other two. I always planned on reading the others. In fact, I think Lasher is on my Goodreads list. See, it's always been in the plan. Although, a friend of mine has read all of them and says the first was the best by far. Not exactly the kind of comment to get you to read the others, huh? Especially if, like me, you didn't really like the first one. I should clarify that I liked most of it. It's just that by the end I was incredibly irritated with the characters. I don't even remember all that much why (it's been several years), I just remember the feeling of irritation.

I have liked a couple of her more recent books though. If you're a fan, you know that Rice has recently gone through a transition of sorts. She was raised Catholic, but for much of her life had a crisis of faith, let's say.  Recently (in the past few years), she has rediscovered her faith. I'm obviously paraphrasing and if you want to know more about it, I'm sure you can find articles, interviews, or even a blog by the woman herself. As part of this, or due to this, or as homage to this, she wrote books about the life of Jesus. I found these to be very good books and would recommend them to anyone, even if you're not particularly religious. Maybe that's because my expectations were so different from what I'd expected from her other books. (As a side note, this expectation works against Rice as well. I tried to get my mom to read the Jesus books – she was having none of that!)

I don't even really enjoy the movies I've seen based on her work. Again, I always feel like I'm missing some secret that makes it so exciting to so many others.

Anyway, my point is that I never feel as good about her books as I feel like I should. I mean, she's the master of this kind of book, right?! So, I should love them! And yet… 

The Expats, Chris Pavone

I have no idea how to write this review. Normally, I don't think about the review while I'm reading the book. I did with this one. Sure I have opinions as I'm reading. I even discuss them while I'm reading, but I don't actively think "what am I going to say," while I'm reading. Here, I just wasn't sure what I would write about. Was I enjoying it? Did I hate it? Was it just one of those books I don't really enjoy till the end? That's happened before. I've been reading a book, thinking "this thing is terrible," until the last 10 pages. I can't not finish a book.

But I didn't hate this book. I can't say I liked it that much either. Ok, the premise here is a CIA agent, Kate, who quits her job and moves to Luxembourg with her family when her husband gets a job offer. Shortly after moving, she meets Julia and Bill Mclean. Shortly after that, she begins to believe the Mcleans are not who they claim to believe and that her husband, Dexter, is hiding something from her. Something big. She's right on all accounts. The Mcleans are undercover FBI agents working with Interpol to investigate Dexter for stealing 50 million Euros. And he's guilty.

Exciting right? Former spy, married to a thief, being investigated by the FBI. It's got all the makings of a suspenseful drama. But it's not. It's not a book I couldn't put down. In some cases I decided to play Sudoku on my phone instead of read. Unheard of!   

When the Storm Breaks, Heather Lowell

Sigh. Where to begin. Well, as you can see, the title is a bit cheesy. It pretty much sets the tone of the whole book. Even the back is cheesy: "A serial killer has one obsession...HER."

The core plot is pretty decent, it the execution that fails miserably. It's set in Washington, DC. The main character, Clare, is at her friends dating service late one Friday night. Her friend, Afton, has nagged Clare into giving the method a shot. Clare leaves to catch the bus back to her Georgetown home, and stumbles across a murder.

She runs. The killer pursues. She manages to get enough of a head start and finds a club in Dupont Circle. It's in the basement of a building, and it's pouring rain, so she slips and falls on the steps, knocking herself out. Some club patrons find her and call 911. Among the patrons is a doctor, who takes care of her until the cops and EMTs get there. While they're waiting, Clare comes to enough to mumble and shout some things that, while fairly incoherent, give the doctor some idea that there might be a murder nearby. The cops investigate and find the body.

When Clare wakes up in the hospital, she can't remember much about the evening, just some vague impressions. One, is the killers "cruel smile." Two, that she'd seen him in photo recently. The cops end up thinking maybe he's another member of the dating service. So, she wouldn't know the killer if he was right in front of her, and he's out to get her.

25 Signs You're Addicted to Books

Buzzfeed recently had a post that fits right in here. Check it out and let me know what you agree or disagree with. Enjoy! 

Bloodline, James Rollins

Another one from one of my regular series. The Sigma series is kind of like Di Vinci Code meets….G.I. Joe.

Sigma is the covert arm of DARPA. Already a cool idea, right? The organization is super secret, some parts of the government not even knowing they exist and even fewer knowing what they do. They recruit former military/special forces/special operations and retrain them in scientific disciplines. Most of the operatives tend to be a bit of problem children while their in the military. It's kinda that cliché about the kid who gets in trouble in class because he/she is too smart and too far ahead of the other kids.

I've actually been getting a little bored with the series, but not anymore. Sigma's nemesis is a shadowy criminal organization called "the Guild," the secret in all secret societies. Up until recently, I was totally on board, but in the last book or so, I was getting a little sick of it. I was ready to beat the Guild and move on. I would have been mightily disappointed if Rollins had tried to drag it out for more books. Luckily, I didn't have to be! 

Delusion in Death, J.D. Robb

After reading the epic 11/22/63, I was glad to find my self back in the future - pun intended. JD Robb is Nora Roberts' nom de plume. Now, I've read a few of her other books, under her own name, and I honestly can't say I'm a fan, but I do love this series.

The In Death series follows the enchanting Lt. Eve Dallas, NYPSD Homicide detective, through her life and her cases. And I've got to be honest, this is one of my favorite series. I know, it seems like I say that a lot, right? Well, I keep reading the ones I like, so it's kinda bound to happen.

When we meet Eve, her whole life is homicide. She has one friend (no exaggeration, one), and no life outside her job. She is the job, as she likes to say. She's also a victim - no, a survivor. She was abused and enslaved as a child, finally escaping at the age of eight by killing the man who provided sperm. His plan was to torture her into a life as the "perfect" prostitute - as a special treat for the ball-less wonders called pedophiles and then as a broken women who will tolerate anything.

But she's made herself. She became a cop. She's strong, smart, confident, brave, capable, and not afraid of sexuality. In the first book, her life changes. She meets Roarke (rich, gorgeous, and, the raison d'etre: Irish). One of my favorite things of this series is the complete lack of the will-they-won't-they plot device. By book three, or somewhere around there, they're married. Fast, yes, but I prefer that over 25 books of dating and breaking up and getting back together. Roarke opens the door to a life beyond the job for her. He opens the door to friends and life, not just survival.

11/22/63, Stephen King

King is my favorite author, so I was super excited to read this one. And I wasn't disappointed.

The basic idea, if you don't already know, is that you can go back in time and save JFK. Of course, it doesn't go well. No spoiler there, if you visited the book's website or, you know, ever picked up one of his other book.

The basic run down is this: high school English teacher gets roped into the plan to save JFK by an acquaintance. The acquaintance is a diner owner named Al whose pantry is a rabbit hole (King's phrase) into September 1958. Same time, same place, every trip. Each trip is a reset. Al's changed a few things to see if it's possible, but decides it's time for something big. No matter how long you stay in the past, you're only gone from 2011 for two minutes.

Al attempts to save Kennedy, but has to come back before November 1963 because he is diagnosed with lung cancer. The dying man looks to the English teacher to take up the mission. The teacher tests out the idea, and finally agrees.

Omen Machine, Terry Goodkind

I've been trying to figure out what to say about this book. As I thought, and struggled, I realized the only way to explain how and why I was disappointed in this book was to explain why I enjoyed the old series so much.

So, Goodkind wrote the Sword of Truth series, the last of which came out in 2003. The series follows Richard and Kahlan, and assorted other characters, as they fight to save the world. It's kind of an interpretation of the King Arthur legend.

As I've said before, characters can make or break a plot, and these made it. Richard is kind hearted, smart, curious, and...almost guileless  That's not to say he was some fool, he can deceive when necessary, he just prefers honesty. It fits his role as the Seeker of Truth and the weapon that goes with that role, the Sword of Truth. Kahlan is similar: smart, powerful (no really, not only does she rule, but she has a wicked magic power), and definitely kind hearted. While she definitely needs saving on occasion, the role of damsel in distress she plays in this book just doesn't suit her.

There are other characters that make the story fantastic. Zedd, Richard's grandfather, cranky old man, and mischievous wizard. Nicci, a bad guy, who turns good when she truly sees and understands Richard. Cara, Nathan...and so on.

And that's one of the downfalls of this book, I think. Goodkind seems to forget who they really are. This book starts one day after the finale in Confessor. Let me repeat: one. day. Now, the Confessor has a few of it's own issues. The ending feels a bit...forced. Some have called it a cop-out. I don't know if it's that, but it certainly seemed anticlimactic. But then, the next day, the characters are almost completely different. There is one scene where the old Kahlan seems apparent. A woman tries to kill her, a poor attempt, because she doesn't want Kahlan to suffer the horrible death the woman saw in a vision. She's already killed her children for the same reason. Kahlan uses her power and questions the woman. She is regal and powerful and cold. She knows who and what she is, and will use it when necessary; yet she mourns the children who needlessly died.

The plot has it's merits. Angry and misguided rulers, prophecy, a malevolent force out to rule the world, and a mysterious machine. If you ignore some of the missteps, the general plan of the story works. It's the details that hurt it. I've already talked about the character issues. It also feels slow. Scenes that should take one chapter, takes five. Richard in particular seems a bit slow. He finds he can talk to the machine, and waits about 100 pages to actually ask the machine questions. Seems very un-Richard like.

My other issue is with the purpose. Sword of Truth definitely ended. This book says "A Richard and Kahlan Novel" on the cover, indicating this is a new adventure. Yet, as I said, it's only one day later. It seems to be the start of a new series - the bad guy is definitely still lurking - but it starts with hardly a breath for the characters. Are we starting a new saga? Did Goodkind decide that Confessor wasn't really the end? Or maybe it never was and it was a misunderstanding with the readers? The blurb for Confessor calls it the "concluding novel," so I don't see how.

I will read the next book, The Third Kingdom, because I hope it will improve. As far as this book...well, if you're a fan, give it a shot. Hopefully, you'll disagree with me. If you're not a fan, then you should be starting with Wizard's First Rule anyway. I would recommend the original series, so have at it! As far as this one goes. Well, it's just a bit.....limp.

Omen Machine, Terry Goodkind

Headed for Trouble, Suzanne Brockmann

Another collection of short stories, like Twilight's Dawn, only for a romance series called Troubleshooters. Now, I've proposed my 60/40 rule before, and I stand by it. Brockmann is excellent at making sure the romance doesn't swallow the plot. She's actually the author that convinced me I didn't hate all romance.

The series starts with characters from a navy SEAL team, and ripples out into the FBI and a private security company called Troubleshooters. You don't really have to read this series in order, but there is some crossover - minor characters in one book are main characters in another and things that happen to them while they're minor effect their main story. Every now and then the plots, being suspense, get a little hard to believe but for the most part these are really good reads. The ones in the beginning have a little extra ooph, adding a flashback story line. Like WWII spies or gay soldiers. That's not to say the series gets boring. It keeps up, just without some nice historical side plots.

That's another thing: the characters are really diverse - by race, gender, sexual orientation, age, etc. It makes the whole thing more complex and real. And the characters never go completely away, so the ones you love are always floating around.

As I said, this is an anthology. I'm not going to go over everything, because, dude, there are a lot. There is a timeline in the beginning, so if you're already a fan of the series, you'll know where everything fits. If you're not, you won't be lost for much of it. There are a might be a reference or 2, but very limited. There are short stories, but there also interviews and conversations. Sounds kinda weird, right? They're entertaining, though. The interviews are between characters and Suz. The conversations are similar. All the characters are aware of their status in a book...and that Suz is the author.

Some of the stories can be found on ebook or at the end of other books, so there may be some repeats if you've read the series. If you're new, this may give you a little taste - various characters and situations. Another thing about this book is Shane's Last Stand at the end. It's a short story to go with Brockmann's new paranormal series, Fighting Destiny.

Definitely recommend this one for fans and for those thinking about becoming fans.

Headed for Trouble, Suzanne Brockmann

Twilight's Dawn, Anne Bishop

Another Anne Bishop, so you already know I liked it.

This is a collection of 4 short stories from the Black Jewels Series. This world is a flip flop of what you typically find for fantasy imagery. The Darkness is good - in fact the darker something is, the better. Gender roles are turned on their head. Men have to protect their virtue and reputation. Women rule and men bow to their wishes - for the most part - and are happily sexually liberated. Unfortunately, men are also more vulnerable to sexual predators. The characters are named Lucivar, Daemon, and Saeten, High Lord of Hell. They're also the good guys.