Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is Unlikable Characters You Can’t Help but Love .
I almost skipped this one because I really couldn’t come up with a full ten… but what the heck, might as well share the ones I did think of!
My FIVE are:
Severus Snape (Harry Potter series): I have a feeling we’ll be seeing a lot of Snape today. And yes, he’s problematic, but somewhere deep inside he did love Lily (even though he was awful to her son year in and year out…)
Prince Cardan (Folk of the Air series by Holly Black): A total mean jerk when we meet him, but eventually, he’s redeemed by love.
Tybalt, King of Dreaming Cats (October Daye series by Seanan McGuire): I mean, I never actually hated Tybalt, but Toby does at the beginning of the series! Fortunately, their hate/hate relationship morphs into something completely different.
Lestat (The Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice): When we meet Lestat in Interview with the Vampire, we see him through Louis’s eyes, and let’s just say, it’s not a favorable impression. But as of The Vampire Lestat, we get to see him as he sees himself, and he’s just so much fun!!
Damon Salvatore (The Vampire Diaries by L. J. Smith): Well, to be totally honest, I don’t remember much about book Damon (or the books in general), but I loved Damon on the TV series, so I say that counts!
That’s it! Those are the only loveable baddies I could think of!
Can’t wait to see everyone else’s lists… so please share your links!
Welcome to Shelf Control — an original feature created and hosted by Bookshelf Fantasies.
Shelf Control is a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up! For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out my introductory post, here.
Want to join in? Shelf Control posts go up every Wednesday. See the guidelines at the bottom of the post, and jump on board!
On one side of the border lies the modern world: the internet, homecoming dances, cell phones. On the other side dwell the ancient monsters who spark humanity’s deepest fears: dragons.
Seventeen-year-old Kay Wyatt knows she’s breaking the law by rock climbing near the border, but she’d rather have an adventure than follow the rules. When the dragon Artegal unexpectedly saves her life, the rules are abruptly shattered, and a secret friendship grows between them.
But suspicion and terror are the legacy of human and dragon interactions, and the fragile truce that has maintained peace between the species is unraveling. As tensions mount and battles begin, Kay and Artegal are caught in the middle. Can their friendship change the course of a war?
In her young-adult debut, New York Times bestselling author Carrie Vaughn presents a distinctly twenty-first-century tale of myths and machines, and an alliance that crosses a seemingly unbridgeable divide.
How and when I got it:
I bought this book on a whim one day while browsing at my local sci-fi/fantasy bookstore.
Why I want to read it:
I’ve read four books by Carrie Vaughn, and have a few more on my shelves that I do want to get to. I love her writing style, her storytelling ability, and her imagination!
I don’t think I even read the synopsis before buying Voices of Dragons, but I do think it sounds like it could be a great read! The description of the world is fascinating — our modern world, but with dragons across the border. I’m really curious about the plot, and now that I’ve “rediscovered” it on my shelves, I’m eager to give it a try.
I see that this is the first of a two-book series — the second book, Refuge of Dragons, is described as a novella that wraps up the story. Here’s hoping I like book #1 enough to want to read #2 as well!
Welcome to Shelf Control — an original feature created and hosted by Bookshelf Fantasies.
Shelf Control is a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up! For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out my introductory post, here.
Want to join in? Shelf Control posts go up every Wednesday. See the guidelines at the bottom of the post, and jump on board!
Title: A Venetian Affair Author: Andrea di Robilant Published: 2003 Length: 291 pages
What it’s about (synopsis via Goodreads):
In the waning days of Venice’s glory in the mid-1700s, Andrea Memmo was scion to one the city’s oldest patrician families. At the age of twenty-four he fell passionately in love with sixteen-year-old Giustiniana Wynne, the beautiful, illegitimate daughter of a Venetian mother and British father. Because of their dramatically different positions in society, they could not marry. And Giustiniana’s mother, afraid that an affair would ruin her daughter’s chances to form a more suitable union, forbade them to see each other. Her prohibition only fueled their desire and so began their torrid, secret seven-year-affair, enlisting the aid of a few intimates and servants (willing to risk their own positions) to shuttle love letters back and forth and to help facilitate their clandestine meetings. Eventually, Giustiniana found herself pregnant and she turned for help to the infamous Casanova–himself infatuated with her.
Two and half centuries later, the unbelievable story of this star-crossed couple is told in a breathtaking narrative, re-created in part from the passionate, clandestine letters Andrea and Giustiniana wrote to each other.
How and when I got it:
I picked up a copy at one of our big library sales, probably about 10 years ago.
Why I want to read it:
I barely remember, but this seems like a book that I grabbed on a whim while browsing at the huge annual library sale. The cover and title certainly would have caught my eye!
I don’t read a ton of non-fiction, but there are so many elements of this story that sounds like they’d be fascinating — historical Venice, a secret love affair, a discovered cache of passionate letters — just the synopsis makes me want to know more!
This book has pretty mixed reviews on Goodreads, but some of the reviewers seem to have expected a novel and felt disappointed that this is a non-fiction book. Other reviews are absolutely glowing, so it’s a bit difficult to get a good sense of the book’s overall reception.
I’m interested enough that I’ve held on to this book all these years, but I’ve never quite been in the mood to pick it up and read it.
Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is Favorite Words. That felt a little broad to me, so I thought I’d try to come up with a list of words I learned, discovered, or just enjoyed through my reading.
My top 10 are:
Absquatulation: Departing in a hurry; absconding (encountered in the Outlander series)
Castrametation: the making or laying out of a military camp (also from the Outlander series)
Ligneous: made, consisting of, or resembling wood; woody (from Tomorrow, and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin)
Ludic: showing spontaneous and undirected playfulness (also from T&T&T)
Seneshal: the steward or major-domo of a medieval great house (from the October Daye series by Seanan McGuire)
Symbiont: an organism living in symbiosis with another. (from the Parasitology series by Mira Grant and from Fledgling by Octavia Butler)
Taradiddle ~ A fib, or falsity (from the Finishing School series by Gail Carriger)
Widdershins: in a direction contrary to the sun’s course, considered as unlucky; counterclockwise. (from Discworld books by Terry Pratchett)
Oubliette: a secret dungeon with access only through a trapdoor in its ceiling. (from A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness)
Barouche-landau: A barouche-landau was an expensive four-wheeled carriage drawn by two horses, with two collapsible hoods – one for the front-facing passengers and one for the rear-facing passengers. (from Emma by Jane Austen)
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Do you have any favorite words that you’ve picked up from your reading?
If you wrote a TTT post, please share your link!Save
Welcome to Shelf Control — an original feature created and hosted by Bookshelf Fantasies.
Shelf Control is a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up! For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out my introductory post, here.
Want to join in? Shelf Control posts go up every Wednesday. See the guidelines at the bottom of the post, and jump on board!
Title: We Ride Upon Sticks Author: Quan Barry Published: 2020 Length: 360 pages
What it’s about (synopsis via Goodreads):
In the town of Danvers, Massachusetts, home of the original 1692 witch trials, the 1989 Danvers Falcons will do anything to make it to the state finals–even if it means tapping into some devilishly dark powers. Against a background of irresistible 1980s iconography, Quan Barry expertly weaves together the individual and collective progress of this enchanted team as they storm their way through an unforgettable season.
Helmed by good-girl captain Abby Putnam (a descendant of the infamous Salem accuser Ann Putnam) and her co-captain Jen Fiorenza (whose bleached blond “Claw” sees and knows all), the Falcons prove to be wily, original, and bold, flaunting society’s stale notions of femininity. Through the crucible of team sport and, more importantly, friendship, this comic tour de female force chronicles Barry’s glorious cast of characters as they charge past every obstacle on the path to finding their glorious true selves.
How and when I got it:
I picked up a used paperback at a thrift shop about a year ago.
Why I want to read it:
I had almost forgotten that I own this book, until I was rearranging some books and found this one tucked behind a couple of others on the shelf. What great timing! This just seems perfect for the witchy month of October.
I’m always up for a good witch story, and I like the sound of the Salem descendants invoking ancient powers to win their championship. Between the 1980s timeframe and the emphasis on friendship, this sounds like it could be a really engaging read… and I’m glad I unearthed it this week, right in time for Halloween.
Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is Books I Read On Vacation. Picking books to take with me when I travel is one of my most important tasks! I think I spend more time planning my vacation reading than what clothes to pack.
In any case…
I always read when I travel, and usually, I associate the books I’ve read with the places I read them. So, here’s a look at ten favorites:
1) Outlander by Diana Gabaldon: What’s a top 10 list without an Outlander mention? I first read Outlander about12 years ago or so, on a family trip to Yosemite. I distinctly remember sitting on a big rock out behind our cabin, looking out at the gorgeous morning, while drinking coffee and opening my paperback to chapter one.
2) The Shining by Stephen King: The cover above is the edition (very old, falling apart paperback) I had with me on a trip to Alaska about 10 years ago. (Sadly, the entire book had come loose from the binding by the time I was done, and it was not salvageable — but I did make it through the entire book before it fell to pieces). And as an added note… I’ve brought Stephen King books with me on so many vacations! There’s something really delicious about reading a terrifying book while sitting in bright sunshine on a beach chair.
3) Dial A For Aunties by Jesse Q. Sutanto: So silly, such a perfect choice for a vacation read! I just read it last month while visiting my daughter in Colorado.
4) My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me edited by Kate Bernheimer: I read this collection of retold fairy tales while on a beach vacation — I needed a paperback I could get sandy and damp, since otherwise I’d only brought my Kindle with me.
5) Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery: Such a delight! I read this book while visiting family to attend a funeral, so not exactly a vacation, but it was a great choice for quieter moments when I needed a little joy and lightness to break up the mood.
6) Sourdough by Robin Sloan: Such a weird book, but it was a great travel read! I bought this on a whim at an airport bookshop (and as a rule, I never buy books at the airport). I read it on the plane and finished it within my first day in New York.
7) The Agony and the Ecstasy by Irving Stone: This was actually a pre-vacation read, but I associate it so strongly with travel that I’m including it anyway! Back in college during my junior year abroad, I took a trip to Italy with a group of friends during our spring break. We all decided to read this biographical novel about Michelangelo in preparation for our trip, and it added so much to our experiences!
8 & 9) Retellings! These are just two examples from the past couple of years, but there’s nothing like a good retelling of a favorite classic (in these cases, Pride and Prejudice and Romeo and Juliet) for a great diversion on vacation.
10) Book Lovers by Emily Henry: I’ve brought Emily Henry books with me on several vacations, and this is the most recent! I had Book Lovers with me for a road trip this year — like in all her books, there’s a sweetness balanced by emotion and humor that make for great vacation reading.
Welcome to Shelf Control — an original feature created and hosted by Bookshelf Fantasies.
Shelf Control is a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up! For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out my introductory post, here.
Want to join in? Shelf Control posts go up every Wednesday. See the guidelines at the bottom of the post, and jump on board!
Title: Domestic Violets Author: Matthew Norman Published: 2011 Length: 329 pages
What it’s about (synopsis via Goodreads):
Tom Violet always thought that by the time he turned thirty-five, he’d have everything going for him. Fame. Fortune. A beautiful wife. A satisfying career as a successful novelist. A happy dog to greet him at the end of the day.
The reality, though, is far different. He’s got a wife, but their problems are bigger than he can even imagine. And he’s written a novel, but the manuscript he’s slaved over for years is currently hidden in his desk drawer while his father, an actual famous writer, just won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. His career, such that it is, involves mind-numbing corporate buzzwords, his pretentious archnemesis Gregory, and a hopeless, completely inappropriate crush on his favorite coworker. Oh . . . and his dog, according to the vet, is suffering from acute anxiety.
Tom’s life is crushing his soul, but he’s decided to do something about it. (Really.) Domestic Violets is the brilliant and beguiling story of a man finally taking control of his own happiness—even if it means making a complete idiot of himself along the way.
How and when I got it:
I received this book as a gift, as part of a book group book swap several years ago.
Why I want to read it:
My book group used to do book exchanges once or twice a year, where we’d draw random names and then send that person a few gently used books that we hoped they’d enjoy. I received a copy of Domestic Violets as part of package that included a few other paperbacks — honestly, I don’t remember which other books came with this one, but I do know that I’ve yet to crack this one open!
I don’t know that I would have chosen Domestic Violets on my own — I’m not as drawn to stories about adults taking a shot at adulting as I am to other genres and story tropes.
This book has an average rating of 3.86 on Goodreads, and I see some very positive reviews from people whose tastes are usually in line with mine, so that’s a good sign. Plus, my book group friends all are avid readers with wide-ranging interests, and I know that if one of them thought this book was good enough to recommend, then it’s probably worth the time to read.
I’m feeling pretty on the fence, though — I’ve had this books for years now, and haven’t yet felt the urge to pick it up and get started. I’d love to hear other readers’ opinions!
What do you think? Would you read this book?And if you’ve read it, do you recommend it?
Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is Favorite Bookstores OR Bookstores I’d Love to Visit. Having just returned from a one-week vacation during which I visited about five different bookstores, I feel like this topic is just perfect for me!
Some of my favorites are:
1. Borderlands Books (San Francisco, CA): An awesome independent bookstore that’s been around for 20+ years, specializing in science fiction, fantasy, and horror. I’ve attended some truly great events here — and fun fact: This bookstore is featured in the October Daye series by Seanan McGuire. How cool is that?
2. Green Apple Books (San Francisco, CA): A huge used book store that’s a San Francisco institution!
3. The Strand (New York, NY) — I don’t get to New York nearly as often as I’d like, but when I do go, a visit to The Strand is a must!
4. Title Wave Books (Anchorage, AK): I’ve managed to visit Title Wave Books (and how awesome is that name?) on two different trips to Anchorage. It’s a big, sprawling used book store — so much to look at and explore.
5. Book Worm (Boulder, CO): Another used book store that I’ve now been to twice. It doesn’t look like much from the outside, but inside it’s an absolute maze of shelving and great books and weird, unusual finds. I could (and have) spent hours there!
6. Russell Books (Victoria, BC): Another terrific used book store that I stumbled upon once during a vacation. Are we detecting a theme yet? Hint: I can’t resist a great used book store!!
7. Sefer Ve Sefel (Jerusalem, Israel): I’m just amazed to discover that this bookstore still exists! I remember going there to stock up on American paperbacks while studying abroad in Israel many, many (MANY!) years ago.
And bookstores I’d love to visit are:
8. Powell’s Books (Portland, OR): I mean, Powell’s is just legendary! I’ve never been to Portland, but I’d very much like to get there someday… and if I do, this store will be a must-see.
9. Shakespeare and Company (Paris): Dreaming big here! A trip to Paris + books??? What could be better?
10. Poisoned Pen (Phoenix, AZ): I’ve been to an author event sponsored by this store, but have never actually been inside. Poisoned Pen is the local bookstore for a few favorite authors, including Diana Gabaldon, and is an amazing source for signed editions of new releases.
Have you been to any of my favorites? What do you love most about your favorite bookstores?
Welcome to Shelf Control — an original feature created and hosted by Bookshelf Fantasies.
Shelf Control is a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up! For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out my introductory post, here.
Want to join in? Shelf Control posts go up every Wednesday. See the guidelines at the bottom of the post, and jump on board!
A programming note: I’ll be taking a mini-hiatus next week while traveling, and as of now, I’m not planning to do a Shelf Control post for 9/28. I’ll be back the following week!
Marcus aka “w1n5t0n,” is only seventeen years old, but he figures he already knows how the system works–and how to work the system. Smart, fast, and wise to the ways of the networked world, he has no trouble outwitting his high school’s intrusive but clumsy surveillance systems.
But his whole world changes when he and his friends find themselves caught in the aftermath of a major terrorist attack on San Francisco. In the wrong place at the wrong time, Marcus and his crew are apprehended by the Department of Homeland Security and whisked away to a secret prison where they’re mercilessly interrogated for days.
When the DHS finally releases them, his injured best friend Darryl does not come out. The city has become a police state where every citizen is treated like a potential terrorist. He knows that no one will believe his story, which leaves him only one option: “M1k3y” will take down the DHS himself.
How and when I got it:
I bought a paperback copy about 3 years ago.
Why I want to read it:
To be honest, I’m not entirely sure that I do want to read this! I’ve heard about Little Brother for years, but in general, tech-focused sci-fi isn’t usually my jam. Still, check out those blurbs by Neil Gaiman and Scott Westerfeld!
This book pops up on a lot of “best of” geeky reading lists, but I didn’t have a copy of my own until a few years ago, when I picked one up thinking it might entice my son to read a book other than those assigned for school. Nope, he didn’t show any interest, but I’ve held onto it, thinking I’d want to read it eventually.
So far, I haven’t been motivated to pick it up and give it a try, so at this point, I’m inclined to think that Little Brother will go in the donate pile next time I need to clear more room on my shelves. But… I’m open to being persuaded that I should keep it and read it!
What do you think? Would you read this book?And if you’ve read it, do you recommend it?
Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is Books on My Fall 2022 To-read List. My list this time is a combination of upcoming new releases and books I already own but haven’t read yet.
My top 10 for fall are:
The Spare Man by Mary Robinette Kowal
Well Traveled by Jen DeLuca
The Sentence by Louise Erdrich
Even Though I Knew the End by C. L. Polk
Lavender House by Lev AC Rosen
Ocean’s Echo by Everina Maxwell
Troy by Stephen Fry
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers
The Grief of Stones by Katherine Addison
Heading Over the Hill by Judy Leigh
What books are on your TTT list this week? Please share your links!
Bookshelf Fantasies 