Summer

30 August 2010

Books in the House - Monday - 30 Aug 2010

I went on a bit of a bender last week and did some ordering from B&N:
WICKED GAME: WVMP Book 1 - Jeri Smith-Ready, UF, MPB
BAD TO THE BONE: WVMP Book 2 - Jeri Smith-Ready, UF, TPB
MOZART'S BLOOD - Louise Marley, supernatural historical, TPB
HOW TO SEW A BUTTON & OTHER NIFTY THINGS YOUR GRANDMOTHER KNEW - Erin Bried, fun nonfiction as recommended by Mollie on BTO, TPB
DOPPELGANGSTER: Esther Diamond #2 - Laura Resnick, UF, MPB

From Mary Ann on BTO:
9 DRAGONS: Harry Bosch #15 - Michael Connelly, suspense, HB
THIS BODY OF DEATH: Inspector Lynley #15 - Elizabeth George, suspense, HB

29 August 2010

Mini Interview with Ann Aguirre


Ann Aguirre has a contest on her blog for her upcoming new release, KILLBOX. It's her latest in the Sirantha Jax series. As part of the fun, she said we could do a mini-interview with her to add points to our chances for the drawing. So I emailed her my questions and here are her answers:

Ann, thank you for doing the mini-interviews as a way to be entered for your contest.





My five questions:

1. Do you have any favorite quotes or quotable people?

Ann: Every beginning is a consequence--every beginning ends some thing. ~Paul Valery

"Everything changes, nothing remains without change." Buddha (Hindu Prince Guatama Siddharta, the founder of Buddhism, 563 - 483 BC


2. Do you have any calendars that you get each year?

Ann: I only use the Google calendar, actually.

3. Would you want to be immortal?

Ann: Nope. It would be too sad seeing my loved ones die around me.


4. Do you have any favorite TV shows or movies?

Ann: Oh, tons! Supernatural, Bones, Leverage, White Collar,
Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares, Fringe, Justified, Castle...just to name a few.


5. Do you have any hobbies that relax you after a day of writing, or do you need that kind of relaxation?

Ann: I love to read, and as you can see above, I enjoy TV too. Movies, music, and video games are my chief interests, apart from books.



Blooms on Sunday - 29 Aug 2010

Our tomato plants are loaded and ripe!! YAY!



Fruits of our labor


28 August 2010

BURY YOUR DEAD: Chief Inspector Gamache Novel #6 - Louise Penny


From the back of the ARC: In BURY YOUR DEAD, Penny peers deeper into the psyche of her beloved Inspector Armand Gamache, unveiling a broken man coming to terms with his buried grief and guilt.
It is Carnaval in Quebec City and Gamache has come not to join the celebration but to recover from an investigation gone wrong. But death is inescapable, even in the sanctuary of the Literary and Historical Society--where an obsessive historian's quest for the remains of the founder of Quebec, Samuel de Champlain, ends in murder. Could a secret buried for nearly 400 years be so dreadful that someone would kill to protect it?
*************************************
Chief Inspector Armand Gamache is recovering. The reader finds out in slow bits from what he is recovering. One of his agents, Jean Guy Beauvoir, is also recovering from the same event. Both are involved in solving a murder. The investigations are low profile for both agents. Each is an investigation into the past as well as the present.
It took me a bit to get into the story, partly because it takes place in Quebec, an area and history I know little to nothing about. I decided to sit back and read this like I read and enjoy my British suspense and thrillers. It worked and I found myself staying up later and later to read a few more pages.
This was my first experience with this series and it will definitely not be the last. This is a gorgeously written suspense. I was pleased to get this from LibraryThing this month. I have read plenty of wonderful reviews and I have STILL LIFE, the very first Chief Inspector Gamache novel, on Mt Git'r'Read. It's getting moved to the top of the stack when I am ready to read another superbly written, highly suspenseful, wonderfully written charactered novel. I need a rest after this one, something light, like a sorbet something light.
Five gorgeously suspenseful beans......

27 August 2010

BLACK HILLS - Dan Simmons, narr Erik Davies and Michael McConnohie

From the back of the BOCD: Paha Sapa is a young Sioux warrior who can see both the past and the future by touching people. In June 1876 he decides to prove his courage by "counting coup" on a dying soldier, but when he lays his hands on General Custer the general's ghost enters his body. The young Sioux must continue to live with not only his strange gift, but with the voice of the general throughout his event-filled life.

Sixty years later, Paha Sapa is driven by a vision he experienced on his people's sacred Black Hills and is determined to blow up Mount Rushmore the day Franklin Roosevelt is there for a dedication ceremony.
**********************************
Dan Simmons is one of my favorite authors for horror and supernatural. I've not read his police procedural mysteries or science fiction, but they are on Mt Git'r'Read.
Black HIlls, Paha Sapa, is the narrator of this history of his life. He as at Little Big Horn, performed in Buffalo Bill Cody's Wild West Show, and is part of the creation of Mount Rushmore.
While at Little Big Horn, he counts coup on a soldier and, to his horror, is overtaken by the ghost of General Custer, Longhair, himself. A ghost he carries with him through his lifetime through the book. This aspect doesn't distract from the story. This is, for the most part, a history of the West as seen through the eyes of Black Hills, Paha Sapa.
Paha Sapa also finds out at a young age that he has the ability to touch a person and see that person's past memories and that person's future. Because of this ability he becomes an enemy of Crazy Horse when Paha Sapa doesn't tell him what Crazy Horse wishes to know, namely information of his death. Paha Sapa runs and keeps moving and the reader follows along.
I admit to skipping portions of the book...the portions narrated by Custer, he got on my nerves, "Oh my darling Libby..." on and on ad nauseum...no campaign talk only, via letters and memories through Paha Sapa, about what erotic acts they've done and will do again when they meet again. I got tired of the lusty narration and skimmed. I began listening to "Longhair's" narration again once he got past that aspect and began 'talking' to Paha Sapa on everyday occurrences when Paha Sapa allowed him.
I was very glad I listened to this book, mostly due to the Lakota language. I'd have mangled it no end if reading it as handheld. The narrators, Erik Davies and Michael McConnohie, are wonderfully talented and the words flow easily. I would love to learn a language as lovely as this.

Five Wild West historical beans.....

WICKED LOVELY: Wicked Lovely Book One - Melissa Marr, narr Alyssa Bresnahan

From the back of the BOCD: Don't stare at invisible faeries. Don't speak to invisible faeries. And never, ever attract their attention. These are the three rules of survival for Aislinn, a teenage grl who possesses the seer's sight---a gift (or curse) that reveals to her the hordes of fey kind who mingle mischievously among mortals undetected.
But the old rules are breaking. Keenan, a powerful, radiantly beautiful faerie--both terrifying and alluring--has taken a special interest in Aislinn, haunting her footsteps everywhere she goes. Keenan is in fact the Summer King, and he's determined to make Aislinn his queen. Although she can't deny her feeling tempted, there are other things to consider. Namely the loss of her freedom and human life, and the deadly fates suffered by all othe other mortal girls Keenan tried to transform into his queen.
A dazzling 21st-century faerie tale, WICKED LOVELY is Melissa Marr's thrilling and enchanting debut novel. Narrator Alyssa Bresnahan's mesmerizing performance is positively spellbinding.
*****************************************
I can highly recommend this lovely tale. It's a wonderfully written fantasy with good side versus bad, humans and faeries, good faeries and not so good. One cannot judge a book by its cover, the fae are lovely to look upon for the most part, but that doesn't make them lovely acting. Aislinn has been able to see the fae her whole life and has been told the rules of how to not get involved with them. Now she hasn't a choice in the matter since the fae Summer King think she is to be his queen. But Aislinn has been in love with Seth, the tattooed and pierced friend since forever.
And there's the wicked Winter Queen who is in the game....
This is a lush modern faerie tale and I cannot wait to listen to the rest of this series. I have INK EXCHANGE arriving next week from Recorded Books...YAY!
Five elegant fae beans.....

25 August 2010

Wanton Wantin' Book List Wednesday

Lordy, it's been a while since I've posted anything remotely like my WWBL (my wishlist)...not like I haven't been adding to this pup, I have 8 pages or more..here are some of the latest updates:
DEATH'S EXCELLENT VACATION - anthology edited by Charlaine Harris
DRIFTNET: Rhonda McLeod Book One - Lin Anderson, forensic mystery set in Scotland
FATALLY FROSTED: Donut Shop Mystery #2 - Jessica Beck, cozy
SPARKS - Laura Bickle, UF
SACRIFICE - S J Bolton, thriller
BLACK SUN - Graham Brown, thriller
DEAD DANCING WOMEN: Emily Kincaid Mystery #1 - Elizabeth Kane Buzzelli, thriller
THE KING JAMES CONSPIRACY - Phillip DePoy, historical mystery
NAPOLEAN'S PYRAMID: Ethan Gage #1 - William Dietrich, thriller
HARD MAGIC - Laura Anne Gilman, UF
THE ARCHANGEL PROJECT - C S Harris, thriller

Dark Faerie Tales has a Chance to Win Something Shiny

Dark Faerie Tales has a pretty nifty interview and chance for a giveaway shiny prezzie from Janet Cadsawan, jewelry designer. She's designed for HBO's True Blood and Rachel Caine's MORGANVILLE VAMPIRE series.
The shiny prize is a charm Janet designed for Jeaniene Frost's NIGHT HUNTRESS series....you know Cat and Bones...sigh.....they're so pretty....love that series
Contest is open until 15 September.

Fresh Organic Tomatoes Here!



The tomato stand is up and running....it lasted about 30 minutes which is pretty good for Lady K....She had one customer, made a buck....three large or four small tomatoes for a dollar...we'll be open tomorrow if you're in the neighborhood...

23 August 2010

Books in the House Monday - 23 Aug 2010

Big ol' box of books arrived on my doorstep last week from my buddy Jenna over at Imzadi Dragonfly. She's been going to some superb book signings at Powells in Cedar Hills and has hooked me up with some signed books as well as some extra goodies.
The signed books:
BITTEN: Women of the Otherworld #1 - Kelley Armstrong, MPB
SUCCUBUS BLUES - Richelle Mead, MPB
KITTY AND THE MIDNIGHT HOUR - Carrie Vaughn, MPB
KUSHIEL'S DART - Jacqueline Carey
GREYWALKER - Kat Richardson
POLTERGEIST - Kat Richardson
UNDERGROUND - Kat Richardson
VANISHED - Kat Richardson
LABYRINTH - Kat Richardson

The goodies:
Sanctuary Season 2 DVD

MEAN STREETS - Jim Butcher, Kat Richardson, Simon R Green, Thomas E Sniegoski
MIND GAMES - Carolyn Crane

Ursula K LeGuin
THE OTHER WIND
THE LEFT HAND OF DARKNESS
TEHANU
THE FARTHEST SHORE
A WIZARD OF EARTHSEA
THE TOMBS OF ATUAN

And some cool schwag:
Labyrinth puzzle, bookmarks, postcards, keychain, scented erasers, Hello Kitty lip balm, stickers...some of this I'm sure I'm to share with Lady K



22 August 2010

Blooms on Sunday - 22 Aug 2010

One of the suns I've collected over the years
My ligularia bloomed

One of the rescue plants....gotta love paying a buck and some change for something pretty


A bloom on one of the sedums in the back garden

Reading In Public Read-a-Thon 22 Aug 2010 w/LibraryThing

Today was the Reading in Public Read-a-thon with LibraryThing.com Readathing Group
Lady K and I chose one of our local Starbucks (Star$$) on 144th and I-25 to have a little sip'n'read...I chose to read for my hour time-slot the book I received in the last LibraryThing Early Reviewers win, BURY YOUR DEAD - Louise Penny, will be released in September


Lady K didn't want me taking a picture of her coloring, but she let me take a pic of her sipping her signature drink, tall mocha frappuccino with lots of caramel drizzle on top
Give this fun group a try and go out and be proud to be a reader of books...go out and read in public today...heck, read in public every day!!

21 August 2010

Oh to have a Washer and Dryer Again...


The above two pics is what happens when a family of three's washing machine goes phhhhht and the new one doesn't get delivered for a week...how do we amass so much laundry?

But today the new washer and dryer arrived....Lady K picked the color(that's my girl!)...let the laundry commence (once we figure out the bells and whistles)!

20 August 2010

Darque Reviews is thinking of a giveaway...


Kimberly over at Darque Reviews is thinking of giving a whole bunch of books, but she needs to feel the love over at her site. If she gets 50 or more comments, she will commence giving away the book love.

18 August 2010

First Day of 2nd Grade

My big girl Standing in line...staying composed...



Greeting Mrs E

17 August 2010

KILLBOX by Ann Aguirre

Ann Aguirre's newest, KILLBOX, is coming out 31 Aug and Ann is having a contest on her blog to win a McCrappeload of books, including KILLBOX....get on over there and see what's the what. I am working on getting a mini-interview with her, too...stay tuned....

16 August 2010

RAGE FACTOR: Dixie Flanagan #2 - Chris Rogers, narr Peggity Price

From the back of the BOCD: Chris Rogers' novels starring former lawyer and no-nonsense bounty hunter Dixie Flanagan get high marks from fans. In RAGE FACTOR, Dixie has her hands full with a serial rapist and a pack of women dedicated to stopping violence against women---by any means necessary.
Dixie is shocked when a jury finds the well-connected and brazen charmer Lawrence Riley Coombs not guilty on multiple counts of assault and rape. His freedom is short-lived, however, when a group of women kidnap him seeking brutal revenge. Dixie begins investigating and discovers some disturbing connections. She fears her friend and prosecutor Brenda Benson is somehow involved, and that these vigilantes will go too far if they aren't stopped.
This companion to the best-sellers CHILL FACTOR and BITCH FACTOR finds Rogers in top form. Peggity Price's stellar performance captures all the verve and sass of this Southern heroine.
***************************************************
This one was brutal! It kept me breathless throughout the story that had multiple things going on through different voices telling the story.
Dixie is still the main character and she has her bounty hunting to do as well as bodyguard duty and the investigation into the vigilante group, Avenging Angels, to see to because she is worried it's actually people she knows and cares about who are taking the law into their hands.
The bodyguard detail is to look after the daughter of an actress out from California to film a sci-fi flick and her teenage daughter is none too happy to have a babysitter. She causes Dixie problems from the get-go and all Dixie wants to do is get her through the day without issue.
Add to the mix the Avenging Angels and the criminals they are after, these are the most intense scenes in the book. Not for the faint of heart.
Five brutal beans.....

Books in the House - 16 Aug 2010

From Mary Ann:
THE BLACK CAT: Richard Jury #22 - Martha Grimes, HB, mystery, keeper shelf
LibraryThing win:
BURY YOUR DEAD: Three Pines Mystery - Louise Penny, ARC, mystery
From Simon & Schuster, likely a blog win, but can't for the life of me remember where, but YAY!:
BRING ON THE NIGHT: WVMP Book 3 - Jeri Smith-Ready, MPB, UF
Dad and Seester:
DOG ON IT: Chet and Bernie Mystery Book 1 - Spencer Quinn, TPB, mystery
IN THE WOODS - Tana French, TPB, suspense
THE SILENT ASSASSIN - Lori Andrews, MPB, suspense
ANGELS AND DEMONS - Dan Brown, MPB, thriller
LADY KILLER - Lisa Scottoline, MPB, suspense
KEPT FOR THE MASTER'S USE - Frances R Havergal, inscribed as a gift to my great-great-great aunt Dora in 1906, Christian devotions

15 August 2010

Blooms on Sunday - 15 Aug 2010









Butterflies and containers this week...trying for the hummingbirds I've seen flitting finally

13 August 2010

THE RECKONING: Darkest Powers Book 3 - Kelley Armstrong, narr Cassandra Morris

From the back of the BOCD: Cursed with the ability to raise the dead, 15-year-old Chloe Saunders inspires fear and awe in everyone she meets. A normal life is all she wants, but that simply is not possible.
With her friends--Tori the witch, Derek the werewolf, and Simon the warlock---in tow, Chloe is on the run from the treacherous Edison Group. Years before, the unscrupulous corporation genetically engineered the teens, giving them incredible powers. But resistance to their experiments is growing, and their secrets are coming into the light. Now armed with new information and new allies, Chloe and her ragtag band are set to take the fight directly to the Edison Group's door. Their mission is threatened, however, when a teenage love triangle begins to form.
A #1 New York Times best-selling author, Kelley Armstrong concludes her Darkest Powers trilogy with this third installment. Narrator Cassandra Morris voices all the adventure and angst with verve and passion.
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I started this series with the second book,THE AWAKENING. Got confused, but enjoyed the story. Listened to the first one, THE SUMMONING, refreshed and ready for this--the third (and best) one.
Each of the teens, especially Chloe, are getting more assured in their abilities and powers, much to the dismay of the people who take them in to shelter them from the Edison Group. Derek is having issues with being a werewolf, but dealing with them as best he can with Chloe's help. Simon is bummin' about his slowly coming along magical powers while Tori's are smokin' right along.
What I really like about this series is how it shows the growing pains of being a teen as well as being a teen with uber abilities. Each has to mature emotionally as well become stronger in personality and powers.
The blurb above from the back of the BOCD states that this is the last of the trilogy, but I looked it up on fantasticfiction for Kelley Armstrong and it posts that there is one more, THE GATHERING, coming out next year. I really hope so.
Five growing powers beans.....

THEREBY HANGS A TAIL: Chet and Bernie Mystery #2 - Spencer Quinn, narr Jim Frangione


From the back of the BOCD: Spencer Quinn caused a sensation with the publication of his debut mystery DOG ON IT. Now he follows the critical success of that New York Times best-seller with this secondtale starring down-on-his-luck private investigator Bernie and his four-legged partner Chet, a K-9 school dropout.
Hired to investigate threats against a prominent show dog, Chet and Bernie barely have time to roll their eyes before things get serious. Princess the pampered dog and her owner are abducted--and Bernie's occasional girlfriend, reporter Susie Sanchez, disappears as well. When the intrepid sleuths are separated, it falls to Chet to sniff out the clues and save the day--not to mention find his way home.
Told from Chet's perspective and featuring the humorous ramblings of a dog like no other, THEREBY HANGS A TAIL is another winner from an author whose star keeps rising.
************************************************
I listened to DOG ON IT (review in link) a few months ago and became enamoured of Chet and Bernie...mostly Chet. The story told from the point of view of a smart dog was a very neat premise. Add that to the well written mystery and it was a winner.
THEREBY HANGS A TAIL was equally as good. It doesn't go all Disney and have all the dogs talking to each other. It's just Chet doing the narrating, leaving it sort of noir-ish in feeling. There's the down on his luck PI, the sassy reporter girlfriend of the DOHL PI and there's the dog. Perfect.
Bernie is a good PI, but a little naive when it comes to finances, making bad investment choices in tin futures from a guy who even Chet knows is a shyster. Bernie has to take the job as the bodyguard of the pampered show dog, Princess, just for the dough.
Then the dog and her owner go missing and no one knows nuthin'...Chet and Bernie on the case.
Darkly funny and a fab mystery..I can highly recommend this series.
Five dog-earred beans....

12 August 2010

Gap Tooth Smile For Lady K



Lady K lost an upper tooth....I love this gap tooth grin!

09 August 2010

Books in the House - Monday 9 Aug 2010

It's been a bit since I've had the time or the books in the house to post much..so now it's all in one fell book swoop
From the very sweet Jeanne Stein, the latest magnet to my collection with the cover of the next Anna Strong, CHOSEN...out 31 Aug!!

Thanks to a contest on Paranormality blog, I won the above very cool packet from author Carrie Eicher

I also received:

From Mary Ann:

RED DELICIOUS DEATH - Sheila Connelly, MPB, cozy

From Cassie:

PRETTY POISON - Joyce and Jim Lavene, cozy

NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEED: Haunted Guesthouse Mystery #1 - E J Copperman, cozy

Schwag from Chloe Neill (have a book on the way, too, I think)

I've been Twice Bitten bracelet

Cadogan House coaster

Chicagoland vampires pen (love pens!)

some very cool bookmarks

My order from High Crimes:

HUNTED BY THE OTHERS - Jess Haines, MPB, UF

AVENGING ANGELS - Mary Stanton, MPB, paranormal mystery

A CAST-OFF COVEN - Juliet Blackwell, MPB, paranormal mystery

A TIMELY VISION - Joyce and Jim Levine, cozy paranormal, MPB