Introverted Reader

Watchers by Dean Koontz: Book Review

Travis Cornell is a man for whom life has lost all meaning. But on a hike one day, he runs into a golden retriever, somewhat battered, obviously friendly, but determined to protect him from something. Travis, a former member of the elite Delta Force, finds himself running in a blind panic with the dog. He takes the dog in and, after the dog displays absolutely amazing intelligence, names him Einstein. The two eventually become three when Travis meets lonely Nora Devon through Einstein. She joins with Travis in trying to protect Einstein from the mysterious being known as The Outsider. Unfortunately, The Outsider isn't the only one looking for the group. Can they all protect each other? Okay, this was Dean Koontz, so it almost naturally follows that I couldn't put it down. I fell in love with Einstein. The humans? Honestly, I could take them or leave them. But a dog with a sense of humor and a clear way to express it? Sign me up. Koontz usually does a good job with this, but I really liked the way that not everything was black and white in this novel. As scary as The Outsider is, he's not always the villain. In fact, he's postively heart-breaking in some scenes. Probably the only thing keeping me from giving this five stars was the huge amount of coincidence involved in Einstein managing to find an independently wealty Delta Force guy to live with. Aren't the odds better that he would find just a regular joe who would lack the knowledge, money and experience to protect him? Really, that's just a small thing, but it did periodically bug me. Overall, I recommend this for all Koontz fans, and really, for dog lovers who have ever wondered what their companions would say given…

Magic Study by Maria V. Snyder: Book Review

Yelena is now in Sitia, where she meets her long-lost family and starts to learn how to control her magical powers. But life isn't really any easier for her here than it was in Ixia. Sitians believe she's a spy from the north, sent to pave the way for the Commander's takeover of their country. Others believe that her magic is too powerful and think she should be...neutralized. While she's trying to acclimate to her new surroundings, a serial killer starts preying on young women, and Yelena is next on his list. Too much. Just too much. I still love Yelena, and I was a little lost without Valek (although I still dislike his name). But this book seemed to lack focus. I know that life is rarely neat and tidy with only one thing going on, but there are so many people out to get Yelena for wildly different reasons that it just got a little ridiculous. I did enjoy seeing Yelena learn to interact with her family and her tribe again. She's so endearingly awkward and uncomfortable that you can't help but feel bad for her. It's nice to see that she's not perfect! Her relationship with her brother is not what I expected and it bothered me at first, but it's explained toward the end of the book. But Yelena is still Yelena with all that implies. I loved watching her kick some butt and readjust some nasty attitudes. The Sitians really don't know what to make of her. I liked that she has a big heart and will do pretty much anything to help someone out. It can be small, like helping beggar children, or big, like laying her life on the line for someone else. She stays true to herself no matter the external pressures…

Footsteps in the Dark by Georgette Heyer: Book Review

Peter, Celia, and Margaret have inherited a country estate, complete with an old priory and chapel. The house has been uninhabited for years, but the group, along with Celia's husband Charles; their aunt Mrs. Bosanquet; and their loyal retainers, move in to have an adventure. They get more adventure than they expected. The locals believe the house is haunted by a spectral figure they call "The Monk." The extended family laughs it all off, until they start seeing the Monk themselves. This was pretty forgettable and the parts that weren't forgettable were irritating. Let's start with the irritating. This family moves out to the country and then has a grand old time laughing at all the country people around them. The "upper crust" of the little society gets off relatively unscathed, but everyone else is an ignorant dumbass. Being from the country myself, this stereotype got old for me a long, long time ago. Moving on to the forgettable... There was not one character that was well-developed. In fact, I never could remember which man was the husband and which was the brother. It mostly didn't matter since they all just acted like besties anyway and there was never any husband-and-wife chemistry between Celia and Charles. Both of of the guys were flippant little smartasses who thought they were much more intelligent than they actually were. I did have Margaret and Celia straight, but that's only because Margaret was the one who was developing a love interest. Mrs. Bosanquet did amuse me though. She was very good at putting Peter and Charles in their places. The romance was of the type that suddenly appears out of nowhere, and I generally dislike that kind of thing. I never really cared what was going on with the Monk. I had an idea…

Bookish Miscellany

My Thoughts, Your Thoughts: Choosing Audio Books

I turned on my computer tonight for just a few "quick" things. I wanted to comment on some blogs; I wanted to write a review of Fairest, which I just finished listening to on the way home; and I wanted to choose my next audio book. None of these things should take too long, right? I'm tired. I can knock this out and be in bed by 10:30. Here it is 10:20 and I haven't written a review and I still haven't chosen a new audio title. I think I make this harder than it has to be. Here's how my process goes. I log onto my library's digital website. I'm not organized enough to actually request a book from another library, so I just go with whatever is available digitally. I go straight to my wishlist. And then I scroll up and down and down and up aimlessly. See, the site's still fairly small, and I still prefer print to audio. Two strikes against me. It gets worse from here. First, I have to decide what I'm in the mood for. Tonight? I just finished a fairy tale so I want something a little meaty. But not too meaty, because I need to be able to focus on a print book for that. Up and down, down and up. Hmmm... Secrets of Eden by Christ Bohjalian could work. But wait a minute. Is this about abuse? Yup. I'm finishing up a book that centers around abuse and stalking, and there's only so much of that kind of thing I can read and keep my sanity. Next! Up and down, down and up. Maybe Romancing Miss Brontë? Nah. I think I want to physically read that one. What about Bet Me? Yes, that could be good. It's not meaty, but…

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March 6, 2012

Bookish Miscellany

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. Posted:I was pretty really slack last week because I was more in the mood for reading than blogging, so all I posted was a Saturdays in the South guest post from Robin Caroll. Head on over and share some of your favorite comfort food with us! Read:Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King Footsteps in the Dark by Georgette Heyer Magic Study by Maria V. Snyder Currently Reading:I'll Be Watching You by Charles de Lint The Lost: A Search for Six of Six Million by Daniel Mendelsohn Fairest by Gail Carson Levine, read by Sarah Naughton, et al. Up Next:I'll get started on When I Found You by Catherine Ryan Hyde on my nook at the gym this week. I'll also need a new audio book, but I haven't thought that far ahead yet! What are you reading this week? I have an affiliate relationship with Malaprop's, my local independent bookstore located in beautiful downtown Asheville, NC; and Better World Books. I will receive a small commission at no cost to you if you purchase books through links on my site.

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March 5, 2012

Introverted Reader Features

Author Robin Caroll: Saturdays in the South

Please welcome author Robin Caroll to the blog today! She is the author of Injustice For All, just released in January. She's posting about something near and dear to Southern hearts--food! As a southern lady, food is very vital to me. It's part of who we are in the South, as well as the preparation of meals is a time for family. To this day, my sisters, mother and I often find all of us in the kitchen cooking together for the family whenever we're all together. Here's a favorite recipe of mine. It's my husband's chicken and dumplings recipe, and we love it! Casey’s Chicken & Dumplings 1 cup chopped celery 1 cup chopped onion whole chicken with skin, quartered ½ stick real butter 2 cloves garlic, crushed 2 tablespoons Worchestershire sauce ¼ teaspoon Tabasco 2 cans of ready-to-bake biscuits Sauté onions, garlic, and celery in the butter until onions are translucent. Add quartered chicken and sear. Add approximately 5 cups of water and bring to a boil. Keep at boiling for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Remove chicken and debone, then remove the skin. Return chicken to water/celery/onion mix. Add Worchestershire sauce and Tabasco. Simmer 35 minutes. Slowly and gradually drop in biscuits—each quartered. Simmer 20 minutes. A federal judge lies bleeding on his office floor, betrayed by a most unlikely source—people who helped him bring criminals to justice. Now, why would someone working for the FBI need to disappear after witnessing this crime? When Remington Wyatt sees her godfather’s murder, she recognizes the killers and knows it’s only a matter of time before they come to silence her. She must do the only thing possible to stay alive . . . run. FBI agent Rafe Baxter is serious about his career, and solving a cold case involving…

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March 3, 2012

Bookish Miscellany

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. Giveaway! Comment on author Michael Hervey's Guest Post to enter to win one of two copies of his book, Soundkeeper! Posted: Review: Room by Emma Donoghue, read by Michal Friedman, et al. Review: The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon Movie Review: Oscar-Nominated Shorts Read: Nothing. I've been reading too many chunksters lately! It doesn't help that I watched Amistad for the first time Friday night and now I want to read Roots. I'm not saying that I will, mind you, but I might. Currently Reading: Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King Footsteps in the Dark by Georgette Heyer Fairest by Gail Carson Levine, read by Sarah Naughton, et al. Up Next: I just requested The Lost: A Search for Six of Six Million by Daniel Mendelsohn, so that will be my next non-fiction pick. I might get to another audio late this week as well, but I'll decide that later. What are you reading this week? I have an affiliate relationship with Malaprop's, my local independent bookstore located in beautiful downtown Asheville, NC; and Better World Books. I will receive a small commission at no cost to you if you purchase books through links on my site.

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February 27, 2012

Screen and Stage Review

Movie Review: The Oscar-Nominated Short Films

My husband and I were trying to find something fun and relatively cheap to do a couple of weekends ago, so we were going through one of our free newspapers looking for ideas. We were intrigued when we saw a review of the Oscar-Nominated Short Films, showing at a local theater. We decided to head on out the next afternoon and check them out. The documentaries were being shown separately, so we only saw the live-action and animated shorts. As with a short story anthology, we thought the movies were a mixed bag, but we still had a good time watching them all. I love watching The Oscars even though I've usually only seen a handful of the movies, and those are more likely to be in "Best Makeup" or "Best Visual Effects" rather than "Best Picture." I'm excited to watch the Oscars tonight and to have actually seen all the movies in a couple of the categories, even if they are "just" the shorts! You can watch trailers for the short films at theoscarshorts.shorts.tv Live Action Pentecost: This was the first one shown, and we were a couple of minutes late. It's only 11 minutes long and we really wish we had caught the entire thing. The priest giving the altar boys a pep talk worthy of any football underdog movie was hilarious! Raju: A German couple is in India to adopt a little boy from an orphanage. There was a lot of emotion packed into a short amount of time. The acting was phenomenal. The Shore caught my eye because Ciarán Hinds was in it. He portrayed Captain Wentworth in a movie version of Persuasion that I haven't seen. Yet. And you should all know how I love me some Captain Wentworth. I liked this one. An Irishman…

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February 26, 2012

Introverted Reader Features

Author Michael Hervey: Saturdays in the South and Giveaway!

Please welcome author Michael Hervey to the blog today! His first novel, Soundkeeper, is currently available for Kindle. It will be available as a nook- and iBook by the end of March, and in paperback by the end of April. “They went back outside and Silas locked up the office. Persimmon clouds with cinnamon edges seemed reluctant to surrender to the twilight. The beauty of the sunset was too sensational to rush past, even as hungry and tired as he was. While Hall loitered on the dock, he wondered if the display was a salute from God, a final tribute to someone who cherished His creation and looked after it so well.” We don’t always get to choose where we live. Careers, family, and dozens of other factors come into play when we choose where we will spend our lives. As a writer, however, I am not limited by such practical constraints. The characters I bring to life are free to live and play wherever I want them to, perhaps in places I wouldn’t mind living. My home is in the Piedmont of North Carolina, in beautiful green and rolling countryside a short drive from the coast. But in Soundkeeper, my characters get to breathe in the heavy smell of the salt marsh every day and experience sunsets each evening that are more entertaining than anything man will ever create. Is it a good thing for an author to be jealous of their characters? I’ve been fortunate to spend a lot of time in the Lowcountry of South Carolina, where Soundkeeper is set, but I’ve always dreamed of living there. A place where I know the tides better than the TV schedule, and seclusion and adventure await beyond my dock. Flip-flops and khaki shorts would be my new uniform, and…

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February 25, 2012

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon: Book Review

Joe Kavalier is a Jew living in Prague just as the Nazis are taking control of the city in the late 1930's. With the aid of his escape artist teacher, Joe smuggles himself out of the country and all the way to New York City. Joe is just what his cousin, Sam Clay, has been looking for. Sam is a New York boy with a love of comic books and a huge imagination. Unfortunately, his artistry doesn't live up to his stories. Joe immediately gets a feel for the comic book form and the two form the comic book duo, Kavalier and Clay. Through the medium of the comic book, Joe takes on the Nazis years before America gets into the war. He also saves up money to try to bring the rest of his family to safety. Despite his best intentions, Joe lives his life while trying to fight the bureaucratic forces of Germany and America to bring his family to safety. I was a little torn about the rating for this one. It was four stars right up until America finally entered the war (about 2/3 of the way through). After that, I just didn't care anymore. I can't explain why without giving anything away. So three stars it is. I liked the characters of Sam and Joe. They were well-developed and believable. I don't know much about comic books, but I liked the chapters that gave the setup for their more popular comic book heroes. I read in the praise for the book that it's supposed to be funny. I must have not gotten those parts. There were a few parts that amused me, but mostly I found the book to be quietly heart-breaking. Reviewed August 31, 2008 Read an excerpt. Find author Michael Chabon on his…